Change is Good
by Cara Mia
Summary: Jason Morgan left Port Charles in Dec. 2003, now he's back....
1. Chapter 1

Show: General Hospital  
  
Title: Change is good  
  
Disclaimer: As much as I'd like, General Hospital and its wonderful characters only belong to me in my dreams… well okay, hallucinations. But, trust me, if it DID belong to me, I'd fire the current writers.  
  
A/N: This idea popped into my head while I was taking a shower… go figure. This story was started in late December 2003 and thus none of the drama happening on the show happens in this story. The story is complete, as I can't handle another fic right now, so enjoy.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Port Charles, NY, early March 2004  
  
Things had changed in PC in the New Year. For one, Kelly's stayed open an hour later, closing at eleven and Elizabeth Webber was pregnant. But pairing an extra hour on her feet with blood rushing to her ankles and hormonal mood swings was not a good combination.  
  
She had been cross with the last few customers, who had taken one look at her stressed face, ordered to-go and left quickly. She was taking the last of the coffee cups to the empty kitchen before she flipped the closed sign at the door and dragged herself home when the telltale jingle of the bell above the door signaled she had yet another customer.   
  
She barely resisted the urge to scream in frustration. "It's past eleven. We're closed," she announced through clenched teeth, keeping her back to the customer.  
  
Jason Morgan watched her with detached amusement. "The sign said, 'Open'," he replied.  
  
Liz whirled around. Much to her dismay, her eyes hungrily drank in his sudden appearance. She hadn't seen him in four months. Well, as far as she knew, *no one* had seen him in four months. Since he and Courtney had separated… well divorced.  
  
Jason watched her watch him. He wasn't prepared for the onslaught of emotions that hit him full force. The last time he'd seen her, things had ended disastrously. She had sided with Ric again. After all he'd done, after all he'd put them through, she'd stuck by him. Her loyalty had angered and baffled him at the same time. He had wished Courtney had done the same. Now, he was amazed at how he could still find her beautiful.  
  
"Jason," she finally managed when she'd recovered her tongue.  
  
"Hello, Elizabeth." He strode up to the counter and, as he'd done countless times before, took a seat.  
  
"This is a surprise," she continued, automatically flipping the coffee machine back on. "You've been gone a while… well not by your standards but still…." She knew she was rambling; she didn't understand why.  
  
"I know," he replied.  
  
Elizabeth couldn't help but notice the far away look in his blue eyes.   
  
"I heard about your divorce. I'm sorry."  
  
Jason's eyes snapped to meet hers at that but her statement was genuine. "Thank you," he replied.   
  
From his travel-weary look, Liz could tell that he had only just gotten back into town and this was the first place he had come. It didn't register that he had probably only come for a cup of coffee; it warmed her heart that, although it was awkward, they were not fighting… yet.  
  
The timer went off. She turned away and lifted the fresh pot of coffee. Wordlessly, she lifted a large Styrofoam cup and poured his coffee, covered it and slid it across the counter to Jason.  
  
He took a sip. It was black, strong and fragrant. Inwardly, he smiled. Elizabeth still made the best damn pot of coffee in PC. He reached into his back pocket for his wallet but Liz shook her head.   
  
"Register's locked. It's on the house," she said with a smile.  
  
Jason nodded in compliance.  
  
Liz took off her apron and knelt to get her purse. When she rounded the counter and headed toward the door, she heard Jason gasp.  
  
Curious, she turned to him, only to see him all but staring at her middle.  
  
"You're pregnant," he stated matter-of-factly.  
  
Liz looked down at her rounded stomach. He had left town before she had announced her pregnancy and her belly had been hidden from his gaze by the apron and the counter. "Yes," she replied, cupping her swollen stomach lovingly.  
  
Jason wasn't sure how to take this. He had known Liz had always wanted to have children but it still came as a bit of a shock. "Congratulations," he replied softly. "You and Ric must be very proud," he added as an afterthought.  
  
"It's not Ric's," she immediately replied.  
  
That had knocked him for six. **Not Ric's?** "I thought you two had gotten back together," he replied with a modicum of bitterness.  
  
"We did. But now we're not," she explained, not meeting his gaze, knowing the answer would shock and possibly anger him.   
  
He would admit it. He was curious. "Then, who's the father?"  
  
Liz lifted her gaze to him, shrewdly assessing his reaction. "It's Zander."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Kelly's, the next day  
  
Emily spotted him through the glass panes in the door and whirled back around. She didn't think she could handle seeing her ex-husband now.  
  
"Emily?" asked Nikolas, gripping her shoulders in confusion. "What's wrong?"  
  
"Nothing," she fibbed. "It looks packed. Maybe we should just come back later."  
  
Nikolas looked at her like she had sprouted another head. "We don't have to stay." He paused looking through the panes. "Liz is on duty. We could just order to-go and head back to Wyndemere." Thankfully, he hadn't spotted Zander sitting in the corner.  
  
"Great," she replied, rapidly assessing the situation. "Why don't you go order and I'll wait for you."  
  
He looked at her strangely again before nodding in acquiesce.   
  
Emily sighed in relief.  
  
Nik shook his head at her behaviour and lifted his hand to the knob. But the door swung open before he could turn it and he found himself staring into the dark swirling eyes of his fiancée's ex-husband.  
  
Hostility bristled between the two men. Zander's eyes narrowed as he paused. "Cassidine," he said, his voice glacier cold.  
  
"Smith," Nik returned, knowing now why Emily hadn't wanted to go inside.  
  
Zander continued to stare before adjusting his coat and shouldering past the man who had ruined his life.  
  
Nik scoffed and shut the door, moving fully into the diner.  
  
Elizabeth watched the scene with an air of frustration. In the past four months, things had gone from bad to worst. She walked on eggshells with them – Nik was her dearest friend as was Emily, but so was Zander. They had grown close again within the past months – after all he was the father of her child.   
  
"What can I get for you, Nik?"  
  
Nikolas turned to her, from where he had still been watching the door with barely controlled anger. He took one look at her cobalt blue eyes to know she didn't want any comment other than what he wanted for lunch. "Two lunchtime specials to go." He couldn't help but turn back to the door, but he could barely see beyond it.  
  
"Anything to drink?" Liz asked, bringing his attention back to her.  
  
Nik still continued to look. "Two hot chocolates."  
  
Liz wrote the order and paused to look at her friend. "What do you think is gonna happen?" she asked, cocking her head thoughtfully to the side  
  
"Huh?" asked Nik, turning back to her in confusion.   
  
Liz arched a glossy eyebrow. "You keep looking back as though you expect something to happen."  
  
Nik frowned. "Of course not. Why would I?"  
  
"I don't know. Why would you?"  
  
Meanwhile outside….  
  
"Emily," he said politely.  
  
"Zander," she nodded in reply.   
  
The former husband and wife gazed at each other. But, for once in the few times they had seen each other since the whole Faith Roscoe disaster in December, they looked at each other without a degree of bitterness.   
  
He looked good, she observed. He had matured in the past four months. He had been moonlighting as a bartender at Jake's for a couple months now, but he had a gig lined up as the manager of Liz's art gallery that was set to reopen in the spring. "How have you been?" she asked not sure why.  
  
Zander adjusted his coat and rubbed his gloved hands against the cold. "I'm good. You?" Inside, he hurt. Who would've thought he and Emily would be reduced to making awkward small talk? But it was still better than fighting.  
  
"The same," she replied.  
  
Silence stretched on between them as they continued to stare at each other, their breath frosting in the cold.   
  
"Well, I gotta run, Em. It was nice seeing you," he added as an afterthought.  
  
"Sure."  
  
Zander nodded and turned away.  
  
"Zander?" Emily called. He turned around, question in his eyes. "See you around?"  
  
"Yeah. See you around." He turned back around and walked away, wondering why it had to hurt so damned much.  
  
The bell above the door jingled. Emily turned to see Nik emerging from the diner, their lunch in two plastic bags. She smiled at him and the dark light faded from his eyes. He had no need to be jealous. Emily was his.  
  
"What'd you get?" she asked, reaching for his hand.   
  
Nik smiled and kissed her forehead. "The special and hot chocolate, your favourite."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
It had been a strange reunion of sorts when Jason had showed up at Sonny's door last night; he had been wholeheartedly welcomed back, pulled into a surprising embrace by his bestfriend. But, of course, because he didn't speak much, he had excellent powers of observation, and he could blatantly see the light had faded somewhat from his friend's eyes.  
  
The moment he asked, "Where's Carly?" he knew yet another thing had changed in Port Charles.   
  
"She's gone," Sonny replied softly.  
  
"Gone? Where? Why?"  
  
"She left not long after you skipped town," he replied, so matter-of-factly that it worried Jason. "She wasn't the same Carly I'd married Jason," he explained. "She was a ghost… a shell. She saw how much it pained me to know that she wasn't the same person and she tried too hard. Finally she left, about two months ago. We're taking a break… her terms, not mine, so that she can find herself."  
  
"Where is she?"  
  
Sonny shrugged.  
  
"And you're okay with that?" Jason asked incredulously.  
  
Sonny shrugged again. "What can I do, Jason? She's not the same person she used to be. If I keep pushing her to become someone she's not, I'll destroy her. And I love her too much to ever do that. Do you understand?"  
  
Jason nodded. In some strange way, he had understood.  
  
That was last night, after he had shadow-walked Elizabeth back to her apartment. He and Sonny had spent most of the night catching up on the past four months. They had avoided all talk of Courtney, but Jason knew that she had moved back to New Haven. He had sent the divorce papers to PC and the courier service had told him they had been forwarded to her old address there.   
  
It hurt. It had felt as though a white-hot lance had been driven through his heart, but he'd done it. He had severed himself in two and damaged another good thing in his life. It was for the best. But he had expected Courtney to fight back – she hadn't. And somehow that had hurt even more.  
  
Standing outside Kelly's he stared at Elizabeth as she went about her work. He was still in a state of shock with regards to her pregnancy and he still couldn't believe that Zander Smith of all people was the father. But still, stranger things had happened in PC.  
  
**She looked so beautiful.** the thought was so sudden and so random that it took him aback even as he continued to stare. Her slight curves had become femininely rounded slightly along with her stomach in the past four months. Her hair was longer and her skin was an ivory white that glowed with good health. He saw her smile. He couldn't help but smile too. She looked happy.  
  
"Morgan," came the voice behind him.  
  
The smile dropped from his face as Jason turned to meet the dark condescending gaze of Ric Lansing. "Lansing," he replied with cold detachment.   
  
Ric looked past him into the diner, and surmised he had been watching Elizabeth. "I see you've maintained your voyeuristic attitude towards my wife."  
  
Jason bristled. "And I see you're still delusional, considering she hasn't been your wife in six months."  
  
"Clever. A first for you, Morgan." Ric pushed past him into the diner.   
  
Jason scoffed and turned away.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Tammy had been early and, thankfully, Liz could leave before the dinner rush. It was cold and she should probably have taken a cab to her apartment or wait for Zander to walk with her like he'd promised, but the white-blanketed city was so beautiful, she decided a walk alone would be nice.  
  
Elizabeth stepped off the Elm Street Pier and stood on the docks. She sighed and rubbed her fingers for warmth, watching how her breath fogged in the twilight air. Despite the beautiful winter wonderland surrounding her, her spirit was flagging after her run-in with Ric… or was it DA Lansing?  
  
Four months ago, they had been well on their way to rebuilding their relationship. Ric had changed – he was kind, attentive, regretful -- he had seemingly given up his vendetta against his brother, a matter in which she had wholeheartedly supported him. But then, flashes of the Ric she had been married to started to rear their ugly heads again. He had usurped Scott Baldwin's position as District Attorney the moment the incompetent lawyer had put his foot in his mouth with regards to Officer Capelli and Lorenzo Alcazar. He had made it his business to clean up the scourge of the town… no nonsense stances on offenders, his brother once again the main target. He had become cold and calculating all over again. But this time, she had recognized the signs and she had known to get out fast.  
  
But that still didn't stop him from coming around, from professing his love and need for them to be together again to her every waking minute. He was smothering her; Zander had told him to back off but of course that hadn't stopped him. He was always seemingly *there*. To think she had ever even considered passing off her unborn child as his. Thank God Emily had knocked some sense into her.  
  
Lovingly, Liz cupped her stomach and turned to step back onto the pier only to see Jason emerging from around the corner.   
  
Jason paused, seeing Liz standing there on the docks. Surprisingly, she smiled at him, and reluctantly, a rare smile found its way to his lips as he stepped off Elm Street onto the docks and strode towards her.  
  
"Hi," she spoke first, wrapping her coat closer around her.  
  
"Hi," he replied, blowing warm air into his cupped palms. "Isn't it a little cold for you to be out here?" he asked.  
  
Liz smiled. "Thank you for your concern, Mr. Morgan, but we're just fine."  
  
Jason nodded in acquiesce.  
  
Liz turned back to the water lapping against the wooden frame of the dock. "How was your first day back?"   
  
"A little strange. Things have changed a lot in four months," he replied softly, his thoughts on Sonny and Carly.  
  
The soft, regretful tone in his voice made Liz turn to him in concern. "Things like what?"  
  
Jason shrugged. "Sonny, Carly… I come home to find my bestfriends have broken up and might be well on their way to divorce." He spat out the word like it was nasty. In both their experiences, the word *was* nasty.  
  
Liz reached out to touch his forearm. Their gazes collided as a shock of tingly awareness traveled through their gloves and up their arms. She pulled back her hand. "Don't worry too much about those two… they've been through a lot worse… they'll find their way back to each other."  
  
He certainly hoped so.   
  
"I ran into Lansing today," he added. He shrewdly noted how Elizabeth's eyes darkened at that. "I didn't know he was the new DA."  
  
Liz looked away. "Scotty Baldwin messed up one time too many and Ric was right there to clean up his mess and step into his shoes," she explained bitterly.   
  
Jason didn't push. Obviously, the subject was a sore spot for her.   
  
"Have you seen Emily?" she asked cheerfully, blatantly changing the subject.  
  
He didn't mind. He wasn't in the mood to talk about one of PC's oiliest criminals either.   
  
"No. I was tied up at the warehouse all day. I'll go over to the Quartermaine's to pay her and Lila a visit later."  
  
"You don't know do you?" she asked incredulously.  
  
Curiosity furrowed his brow. "Know what?"  
  
"Emily is engaged to Nikolas Cassidine. She moved out to Spoon Island three months ago. They're getting married next month."  
  
Jason wasn't sure how to take the news. He'd known his little sister and the Cassidine Prince were serious, but he hadn't expected her to want to rush back into marriage so soon after her divorce from Zander. Obviously he was wrong. But *Cassidine*? The self-righteous do-gooder who only helped out in shady dealings when it suited him to his advantage? Gee, lil sis sure could pick 'em.  
  
Elizabeth cocked her head and looked at him in contemplation. "Why do I have a feeling this little announcement doesn't sit too well with big brother?"  
  
"Isn't it too soon? I mean has her divorce from Smith even been finalized yet?"  
  
"Alexis Davis fast-tracked the divorce proceedings like she did with mine. It's final in a couple weeks. Why the seeming objection? I thought you liked Em and Nik." At Jason's frown Liz chuckled, "But obviously, I was wrong." She chuckled again, cupping her stomach.  
  
Jason's gaze landed on the slight swell barely visible behind her coat. "How far along are you?" he asked softly.  
  
"Five months. I'm through with the morning sickness, but I've become great friends with the toilet considering the baby's using my bladder as its personal punching bag."  
  
Jason smiled softly. She was reflecting on her pregnancy with a great deal of humor. "So Smith, huh…" he trailed off, his curiosity getting the best of him.  
  
"Yeah, Zander. Trust me, it was a big surprise to everyone, so you're not alone in that department."  
  
His protectiveness towards her began to show again. Zander Smith was not one of his favourite persons, not far down the list from Lorenzo Alcazar and Ric Lansing. He had sided with Faith Roscoe and had set a bomb that had almost gotten his sister and her boyfriend killed. "How's he treating you?"  
  
Liz arched an eyebrow at the way Jason asked the question. She bristled a bit. "He's treating me just fine, wonderfully in fact."   
  
Jason looked at her pointedly.  
  
She sighed, her anger fading. Blame it on the mood swings. "Listen Jason, you weren't kidding when you said things have changed a lot. Zander's not the same person he was four months ago. He's through with Faith; he's got his life on track. He's been nothing but supportive towards me. He's going to make a wonderful father to this child one day." The defiant look in her dark blue eyes challenged him to say anything differently.  
  
"I hope for your sake and the baby's that you're right," he said dubiously. "Smith's messed up a lot before. Do you honestly think that a baby's going to change all that?"  
  
Elizabeth scoffed. "You are incredible!" she exclaimed, her anger rising again. "You skip town and come back four months later when everything's changed spouting the same accusations? Zander's changed, Jason. You're the one who hasn't!" With an angry shake of her dark curls, she pushed past him and made her way to her apartment… and Zander.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*   
  
Jason certainly hadn't expected Elizabeth to get so mad at him as he watched her hurry away in mild alarm. And he was a little wounded – her tirade had reminded him a lot of the 'conversations' they used to have the year before when everything had soured between them. Well, some things never changed.  
  
He stood on the docks, looking out to Spoon Island, its lights a beacon in the night. He wanted to see his sister, to talk to her, hoping she could help his sort through the madness of the past few months, but that visit would have to wait for tomorrow. Instead he turned away and headed off towards the Quartermaine estate.  
  
TBC...  
  
A/N: As I said, this story is complete, so it will be regularly updated once a week. R&R, tell me what you think. 


	2. Chapter 2

Show: General Hospital  
  
Title: Change is Good  
  
Disclaimer: See Chapter 1  
  
A/N: Thanks for the comments. I've decided to post this new chapter since I posted a new chapter of LVdlC2. So, enjoy.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Liz angrily unlocked the door and slammed it with a huff. Zander, sitting at the small breakfast nook quickly glanced at the clock before turning to her in confusion. He opened his mouth to ask her what she was doing home so early, but the anger on her face stalled him.  
  
"The nerve of that man!" Elizabeth muttered, slinging off her jacket and yanking her scarf from around her neck. She stalked past Zander into the small kitchen, yanked open the refrigerator and took out a bottle of orange juice. She chugged it, blatantly ignoring Zander's bewildered gaze. Elizabeth recapped the juice and returned it to the fridge and wiped her mouth with the back of her sleeve, barely resisting the urge to scream.  
  
Against his better judgment, Zander asked, "Who are you talking about?"  
  
Liz's eyes narrowed and she stalked from the kitchen to her bedroom but not before she tossed over her shoulder. "Jason Morgan, that's who!"  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Zander tentatively knocked on the closed door of Elizabeth's bedroom. In his left hand, he carried a carton of Ben and Jerry's Phish Food ice cream and a spoon.   
  
"Come in," came Elizabeth's slightly watery voice.  
  
He pushed into the room to see Liz lying on her side facing away from him. She sat up and turned to him, her face smudged by the salty tracks of her dried tears. "Damn hormones," she muttered with a watery smile. "One moment I'm angry as hell, the next I'm blubbering like an idiot for no reason."  
  
Zander smiled indulgently, sat down on the bed and immediately handed her the carton. He certainly had experiences with those particular mood swings since they'd moved in together two months ago. But the reason she had given for her particular episode intrigued him. **Morgan was back in town?** "What happened?" he asked. It wasn't good obviously.  
  
Elizabeth swallowed a huge hunk of ice cream, not even pausing to savor the chocolaty goodness of the mini fish. "I don't want to talk about it. Just the thought of it makes me mad!"  
  
Subconsciously, Zander shied away from her. In the past few months, when Liz got angry, she tended to get a bit violent as well. He didn't think he wanted her to throw her spoon at him. "Ok," he conceded, taking one of her feet in hand. Massaging her feet at the end of the day tended to calm her down. It worked especially well when paired with ice cream. He was pulling out all the stops to get her to open up.  
  
"He's such a hypocritical bastard," Liz rambled, closing her eyes and sinking into her pillows, enjoying the release of the tension in her swollen feet.   
  
"Who is?" he asked, although he knew exactly whom she was talking about.   
  
She cocked open an eye as if to ask him, 'Have you been listening to me?'  
  
"Morgan?" he asked, applying more pressure to the arch of her foot to distract her apathy from him and back onto Jason.  
  
"PC's own little mobster –"  
  
"Alleged." There was that look again. "Sorry," he apologized.  
  
"*Alleged* my rapidly expanding backside; we all know he doesn't just dabble in the coffee business. Anyway, do you know what he had the nerve to ask, Zander?"  
  
"No, what?"   
  
Liz swallowed another huge gunk of the ice cream. "How you're treating me?"  
  
"What?" he asked incredulously.  
  
"I know! Just where does he get off thinking that he can just waltz back into town and act as though the past year has *not* happened? He gave up the privilege of looking into my affairs a lifetime ago."  
  
As much as he would like to voice his own pissed-off opinion, he continued to let her rant, experience teaching him that it didn't pay to interrupt while she was in bitchy-pregnant-woman mode.  
  
"He doesn't trust you, you know," she continued, pointing her spoon at him.  
  
"Really?" It didn't come as much of a surprise.  
  
"He still sees you as that stupid kid you were four months ago. I told him that you had changed. He didn't believe me."  
  
Zander didn't even pretend to be insulted. In some strange miscued fashion, he could see Jason's point of view. His decisions before learning he was going to be a father were not exactly wise. After Emily's rejection, he had tried everything to get a one-way ticket on the Highway Express to Suicideville. His alliance with Faith had aided him, but his unborn child had thrown a monkey wrench in those plans. Of course, he kept his opinion to himself and lifted her other foot into his hands.  
  
"Anyway, I told him off. Basically told him he was living in the past."  
  
Zander paused and thought about his run-in with Emily that afternoon: Weren't they all?  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Wyndemere, Spoon Island  
  
It wasn't even dinnertime and already he looked tired. Emily watched her fiancé from her position at the door to his study, his head diligently bent over the latest financial documents pertaining to what was left of the Cassidine fortune. His quest to find one loophole to save his family from the disgrace of bankruptcy had all but taken over their lives. The one thing that kept them both sane was the thought of their wedding, in just over a month.  
  
But even that joyous event had been dampened by one financial crisis after another. The Q's couldn't track down AJ, who had been most brilliantly elusive of the authorities, a prowess Edward secretly wished he had possessed in the boardroom, Sam McCall seemed to have disappeared off the face of the Earth with more than her share of the treasure, and Nikolas, despite the threat of bankruptcy hanging over his head and Alexis's numerous pleas to scale down his lifestyle, continued to want to shower her with material gifts. In the past few weeks it had become more and more evident that he was not listening to her pleas that it didn't matter if he was broke as long as they loved one another.   
  
She thought of those carefree days not so long ago, when money had been no objective and the only care in the world they had was whether they should spend the night in PC or on Spoon Island. But now, as much as she'd hate to admit it everything was about money and appearances and jealousy.  
  
Like this afternoon. He had played it off well, but Emily knew even the thought of her speaking (not fighting) with Zander made Nikolas jealous. Why for obvious reasons. But was he so dense that he forgot the simple fact that she had divorced her husband for him? She peeked through the door and watched as Nik sighed heavily. Apparently he had a little.   
  
There was no need for those feelings…. Really. Emily loved Nikolas, with every fibre of her being. So why for the love of God, at this moment, couldn't she seem to remember that Zander had been a first-class jerk to her ever since their divorce… with the exception of this afternoon when he'd just been *polite*?  
  
God, she hated that word!   
  
Why?  
  
Why?  
  
Why?  
  
Why did the fact that Zander seemed resigned to their divorce tick her off so much?  
  
Why did he have to show her the man that she had always known he could be now of all times?  
  
Kind.  
  
Caring.  
  
Gentle.  
  
Polite….  
  
Ick!  
  
Emily shook the thoughts from her head. It wasn't fair to anyone for her to even entertain such thoughts.  
  
Part of her whispered the thought she knew lurked deep down – she didn't care.  
  
No, scratch that; she cared far more than she should.  
  
She sighed. Nik looked up and smiled at her. She plastered a smile on her face and went over to her fiancé and captured his lips with hers.  
  
**Hypocrite** the little voice whispered.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Apparently, ranting took a lot out of a person, because Elizabeth eventually drifted off to sleep. Zander tucked her deeper into bed and carried the ice cream back to the freezer, grabbed his coat and scarf and headed towards the docks and his job.  
  
Jake's wasn't the classiest place in PC. In fact it was filled with drunks, promiscuous women and tattooed bikers always looking for a fight – and that was on a *good* night. But the pay was decent and it was an honest job. Besides beggars couldn't be choosers so when Coleman had offered him the job, he had jumped at the chance. He had to pay the rent after all.  
  
By the time he made it, outside was bitterly cold and he stepped into the smoky but warm bar with relief. Zander stamped the slush from his boots and shrugged off his coat, his eyes surveying his surroundings out of habit. There were a few men shooting some pool to his right; most of the seats at the bar were occupied; some dockworkers were taking in an after-work beer – nothing looked out of the ordinary. Coleman spotted him from the bar; Zander nodded at his boss, went behind the bar and got to work.  
  
He had been behind the counter for an hour and half when the door opened sending the swirling North Wind into the bar. He looked up prepared to tell whomever it was to come in and shut the damned door when he found himself staring into the cold glacial blue eyes of his former brother-in-law.   
  
The two surveyed each other with an air of antagonism. Zander refused to be bullied; Jason refused to look away. Finally Coleman, who had been watching with an air of amusement, stepped up to Zander and asked, "You gonna call, Morgan, or are you just gonna stand there and stare at Smith's pretty face all night?"  
  
Jason scowled but muttered, "Beer."  
  
"What, no 'please'?" asked Coleman, even as he popped the cap on the bottle of Bud. At Jason's narrowed eyes, he chuckled, "Nice to know Anger Boy still has his unique sense of humour."  
  
Jason simply ignored him as he snatched up the bottle and headed toward the pool tables.   
  
"You're welcome," Coleman shot sarcastically towards his back. "Prick," he muttered beneath his breath.  
  
Zander wholeheartedly agreed with his boss as he watched Jason settle into a game of pool. Everyone in the bar knew who he was – no one wanted to piss the big bad Enforcer off, so everyone played fair, calling their shots like he'd requested when he joined the game. Zander scoffed in mild disbelief. What was it about this man that made everyone do his bidding?  
  
It was like the answer to the Tootsie Pop question – the world may never know.   
  
Even as he played the game, Jason watched Zander from the corner of his eye. The kid was impulsive, undisciplined and brash – so what exactly was it about him that had constantly garnered the support of both his sister and Elizabeth even after he'd messed up for seemingly the millionth time? He tried to see Zander in the role of a father – he really *did* hope that for Elizabeth's sake and the baby's that he was a good one.   
  
**Elizabeth**  
  
His mind went back to their conversation on the docks. He had really put his foot in his mouth. But Jason rarely lied, and he *never* lied about his thoughts on enemies. And, as far as he was concerned, Zander Smith was still an enemy – it didn't matter that he didn't work for Faith Roscoe anymore. The fact of the matter was that he had conspired to plot the destruction of Sonny not once, but twice. Liz and Emily evidently could get past that, but he couldn't.   
  
He drained his beer bottle and tried to catch Coleman's eye for another, but he was on the telephone. Resigned to his fate, he headed to the bar.   
  
Zander looked up to find Jason heading towards him. His bottle was empty, so he surmised that he probably wanted another. He reached into the cooler, flipped the cap and set it on the counter, hoping Jason would just pick it up and head back to his game.   
  
"Smith."  
  
Alas no such luck. "Morgan," he took the empty bottle and set it in the cases behind the bar. When he straightened, Jason was still standing there.  
  
Zander lifted an eyebrow.   
  
"Congratulations," he said softly.  
  
Zander's eyes widened in surprise before he mumbled in reply, "Thanks."  
  
"Don't mess this up."  
  
Zander frowned and his eyes narrowed. "I don't intend to."  
  
"See that you don't." With those words, Jason picked up his bottle and headed back to his game.  
  
Zander knew he should just let that comment drop but he couldn't help but ask the question, his bruised ego causing him to speak. Elizabeth was right. Jason still thought of him as that stupid punk. "What the hell is that supposed to mean, Morgan?"  
  
Jason paused mid-stride and turned to see Zander staring at him, jaw clenched in barely disguised anger. "Meaning, you've obviously got a good thing going with Elizabeth. Don't go do something stupid."  
  
"You mean like you did with her?"  
  
Jason's eyes narrowed; his own jaw clenched so tightly Zander could see a muscle ticking rapidly, but he continued anyway. "I'll leave the hurting to you and Ric. I'm the one who always cleans up after the mess *you* make. So you don't have to concern yourself with *protecting* Elizabeth anymore – I'll make damned sure I don't ever make the same mistake you did."  
  
Zander tossed his bar towel on the counter and stalked from behind the bar leaving Jason standing in relative disbelief. He'd been talked down to by the little punk. But the worst thing was that he knew he had deserved it.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Wyndemere, Spoon Island  
  
Nikolas reluctantly pulled away. "What was that for?" he asked with a devilish smile.  
  
Emily returned his grin and settled herself in her fiancé's lap. "You looked like you needed one." She pecked him on the lips again. "You've been working hard. Too hard…" she trailed off pointedly.  
  
"Emily…. Please don't start," he began.  
  
"What?" she asked, trailing her fingertips along his strong jaw. "All I said was that you were working too hard."  
  
"And we all know where the beginning of this conversation leads to," he replied, wiping the fatigue from his eyes. "And I'm not in the mood to fight about this right now."  
  
Emily frowned and stood up, hands on her hips. "And I'm *never* in the mood to fight about this, Nikolas. But we'll always lock horns over this until I drill it into that thick skull of yours that it doesn't matter to me whether you're broke or loaded."  
  
"Maybe it doesn't matter to you, Emily, but it matters to me. This family won't survive until I find a way to claw us out of this hole that my grandmother has dug for us," Nikolas tried to explain, his temper rising as well.   
  
"*We* won't survive if that's the only thing you're concerned about."  
  
"Emily, that's not fair."  
  
"Whatever, Nikolas. Enough about being fair. *Life* isn't fair, so why the hell should I be? I want to be selfish about this because that's the only way I want to feel when it comes to me and you," Emily shot back, her brown eyes flashing. "Come find me when you've realized that money is *not* the solution to all our problems!" With that, she scoffed and left the room.   
  
Nikolas stared at the spot where she had just been standing with an air of disbelief, flinching when he heard the front door slam in fury.  
  
TBC...  
  
A/N: OK OK. I lied... the story's not complete, but the majority is already written, so you won't have to wait long for updates. 


	3. Chapter 3

Show: General Hospital  
  
Title: Change is Good: Chapter 3  
  
Disclaimer: See Chapter 1  
  
A/N: It seems I have to clarify for my readers: I have and never will be on the Journey train and I jump for joy when I see it rumbling to a halt. Also, although I love Zander, I am a ZEm fan till the end. That being said, I think it's obvious to conclude that, like my other stories, this will be LIASON all the way as well as Zem.... Whew! Now I've clarified, on with the story... enjoy!  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Elizabeth awoke from a peaceful nap to insistent knocking on the door. She lay still in bed, disoriented for the second. The knocking became louder even as she recognized the sound, slipped out of the bed and headed towards the door, before it was accompanied by Emily's muffled voice.  
  
"Elizabeth? Elizabeth, are you there? It's me, Emily."  
  
Liz swung open the door before Emily could knock again and she stared at her friend with crabby, just-got-woken-up pregnant woman eyes. "This had better be good," she mumbled sleepily, leaning against the doorjamb.  
  
Emily resisted the urge to smile. "Were you sleeping? It's barely eight o'clock."  
  
Liz rolled her eyes and stepped aside to let her friend in. "I had a crappy afternoon and an even crappier evening, so come in or shut up."  
  
"Yes ma'am." Emily obeyed her friend's crabby command and stepped fully into the welcome warmth of the small apartment.   
  
"What brings you over to the mainland after dark?" Liz asked. She had become resigned to the fact that she wouldn't be able to crawl back into the warmth of her bed anytime soon, so she ambled into the small kitchen to fix a pot of herbal tea for the both of them. "I thought you two lovebirds would willingly maroon yourself on the island for the rest of winter."  
  
Emily smiled sadly as she shrugged off her heavy coat and pulled off her gloves, and wool hat from her hair. "Nikolas and I had a fight," she admitted softly. Liz turned to her in mild surprise. "I really don't feel like being on Spoon Island, so you think I could crash on your couch for the night?" she asked, her brown eyes pleading with her friend's.   
  
"Sure, of course you can spend the night, Emily," Elizabeth replied. "Do you want to talk about it?" she asked sympathetically, although she had a pretty good idea of what the fight was about.  
  
"No," Emily shook her head and took a seat on the couch. "Same old thing, just a different day if you know what I mean. The subject matter's become redundant and quite frankly, I'm just tired of this crap." She had cooled down some, but she was still a bit steamed.  
  
"Ok…" Liz trailed off.  
  
Emily heaved a sigh. "Listen, I'm sorry Elizabeth. I shouldn't burden you with my problems."  
  
"Don't be silly, Em," Liz scolded gently, crossing over to take her friend's hand in hers. "I've burdened you with more problems than I'd care to remember. That's what friends are for." She folded the taller girl into a close hug, cradling her head against her chest.  
  
"Are these your maternal instincts kicking in?" asked Emily over a shaky chuckle.  
  
Liz laughed, returning the sentiment. "Yeah, Em, you're my guinea-pig."  
  
That's how Zander found them hours later around 1:30 when he let himself into the apartment after closing up the bar – curled up in each other's embrace. He was a little shocked to see Emily sound asleep on Elizabeth's chest with her arms locked around the smaller woman, but he paused to take in the scene of the two beautiful dark-haired women he cared so much about.  
  
Quietly Zander padded over to them and picked up their mugs and carried them to the kitchen sink before returning and, trying to disturb them as little as possible, lifted Liz into his arms. Despite being five months pregnant, she was as light as a feather. She stirred slightly in his arms, but he soothed her softly as he padded into her bedroom, where he pulled back the covers and set her between the sheets before pulling the blankets around her body and pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead. He smiled as she smiled in her sleep and he grabbed a couple of extra blankets before exiting the room.  
  
He tried to be as emotionless as possible as he efficiently removed Emily's boots outside in the living room. He settled her more comfortably on the overstuffed couch and placed the blankets over her body. He couldn't resist the temptation to touch her and he trailed his fingertips in a feather light caress along her cheek. Emily sighed and murmured in her sleep, angling her head to the side and pressing a small kiss to his palm. Zander pulled away as if he had been burned and, before his resolved snapped and he did something stupid like bent to kiss her, he stood up and headed to his own bedroom, but not before wondering why the hell his soon-to-be-ex-wife was sleeping on his couch.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Emily awoke to the sweet scents of pancakes and quiet conversation. She opened her eyes a slit to see Elizabeth sitting at the breakfast bar attacking a short-stack of pancakes with gusto. Her stomach gurgled at the thought of biting into soft fluffy pancakes smothered in maple syrup and butter, as she realized she had skipped out on dinner last night when she'd left Spoon Island. But lying there under the thick warm blankets on Liz's overstuffed couch seemed so much better and, despite her hunger, she could feel herself slipping back to sleep. But her eyes popped open and her inner jaw dropped as Zander turned from the fridge and placed a glass of milk on the counter by Elizabeth.   
  
He was pale in typical New York winter fashion, but his porcelain skin was perfectly molded over lean but smoothly defined muscles – well-cut biceps and pectorals with flat dime-sized nipples, and a six-pack abdomen that made her mouth water. A little treasure trail journeyed down from the whorl of his navel before disappearing beneath the waistband of his pajama bottoms settled snugly on his hips. She had forgotten how beautiful he was.  
  
Emily skewed her eyes shut and tried to think platonic thoughts, disgusting thoughts – *anything* but Zander. Things like fat old ladies with skin like prunes; Grandfather in a maillot bathing suit. The thought made her laugh out loud, and her eyes popped open to see Elizabeth and Zander staring at her in confusion.  
  
"Funny dream," she explained half-heartedly, sitting up on the couch.  
  
Liz lifted a brow but issued a cheerful, "Good mornin', Em."  
  
"Good morning, Elizabeth," she returned as she left her warm pallet reluctantly and headed over to the kitchen. She caught Zander's eye but he only gave her a nod in greeting and turned back to the stove.  
  
"Are you hungry?" he asked curtly.  
  
"Famished," she replied truthfully. She sneaked a glance at his butt, one of her favourite body parts, and hoped Liz hadn't caught her. But, of course, Elizabeth was in a feeding frenzy, snarfing down her breakfast.  
  
Zander piled three pancakes on a plate and smothered them with maple syrup and butter just the way he knew she liked it. He set it on the counter before her, having to lean over Elizabeth's shoulder to put down the plate. He was so close to her he could smell the sweet fruity scent of her shampoo.   
  
She looked up at him standing over Elizabeth and smiled in gratitude, her brown eyes twinkling. It was like a punch to the gut, she was so beautiful.   
  
He turned away just as Elizabeth looked up. "I'm done. Gotta go."  
  
"Uh-uh," scolded Zander, and pointed to her full glass of milk. "Drink up."  
  
Emily chuckled. She knew how much Liz hated milk.  
  
Liz's nose wrinkled. "Aww, come on, Zander. Do I have to?" she whined like a six-year-old child.   
  
Zander didn't even bother to answer, just gave her 'the look' – one that he had perfected over many shared breakfasts of the past two months. Elizabeth could harp all she wanted – it was good for the baby, so she would eventually drink it.   
  
"Bottoms up," goaded Emily, taking a huge bite of her pancakes.   
  
"I hate you," she scowled at Zander, but held her nostrils closed and guzzled it.  
  
"I bet it was delicious," chuckled Emily, unable to resist.  
  
"Shut up and finish your breakfast, Emily, or I'll spit in your burger the next time you come to Kelly's."  
  
Emily chuckled again, and even Zander smiled.   
  
"I really gotta go. I'll see you guys later." She had already donned her winter boots and she hurried to grab her coat, scarf and pompom hat, pausing in trepidation, wondering if leaving them alone was the wisest thing to do, before whirling out the door.  
  
Silence descended as the door closed behind her. Emily finished her pancakes as Zander quietly washed up Liz's breakfast dishes. Taking her empty plate to the counter she placed it into the sink. She was standing so close beside him she could feel the heat radiating from his body. "Thanks for breakfast," she told him softly.  
  
Inwardly, Zander swallowed loudly. He ceased washing the dishes and, switching off the water, turned to her suddenly. "What are you doing here, Emily?" he asked, his dark brown eyes boring into hers.  
  
The question took her aback. She supposed he would ask the question if he even deigned to speak to her, but still….   
  
"What? Cat got your tongue? Somehow, I don't think your prince would appreciate you being here."  
  
Emily bristled. "Elizabeth is my friend. And, for your information, Zander, I'm a grown woman; I can do whatever I want."  
  
"Just answer the question. What are you doing here?" Silently he added, **Why do you insist on torturing me?**  
  
Emily remained silent. It was a battle of wills.  
  
Just then, the phone rang and, as was typical when Elizabeth worked the morning shift, the machine automatically clicked on and Elizabeth's voice flooded the room:  
  
'Hey, you've reached Liz and Zander. Neither of us is here, so leave us a message after the beep and we'll get back to you as soon as we can.'  
  
Their heads both jerked toward the phone as Nikolas's voice came over the phone. He sounded tired and frustrated, and Emily couldn't help but feel a little guilty.   
'Hey, Elizabeth, it's me, Nikolas. Em and I had a fight last night and she left the island. She hasn't called back here or isn't answering her cellphone either. I called the Q's but Reginald said she didn't go there, so I figured I'd check here. Well, if you know where she is, can you give me a call? I'm getting worried. Ok. I'll talk to you later.'  
  
The two continued to stare at the phone even after Nikolas had hung up. Emily met his gaze. "I guess I got my answer." He turned away, but Emily grabbed his arm, not sure why she did it.  
  
"Zander –"  
  
Zander shrugged off her hold. "What do you want from me, Emily?!" he exploded.  
  
Emily's mouth fell open. "I-I-I don't k-know," she stuttered in truthful reply.  
  
"You can't keep doing this, Emily!"  
  
"Doing what?!"  
  
"This! Seesawing back and forth between your precious prince and me!"  
  
"I'm not seesawing back and forth between you and Nikolas!" she replied in serious indignation. "I *love* Nikolas!"  
  
"Well, act like it! Go work things out with him and stay the hell away from me!"   
  
"You are so full of yourself, Zander Smith!" she hissed in reply. "I didn't come here for you! I came here to be with my bestfriend, who just happens to be your roommate!"  
  
"Well, obviously Prince Charming is ready to kiss and make up, so the next time you two lovebirds decide to argue and you need to find a sympathetic shoulder to cry on, find Elizabeth at Kelly's!"  
  
"Fine!" spat Emily.  
  
"Fine!" he replied equally as forceful.  
  
Emily whirled around, and headed for her things. She shoved her feet in her boots and crammed her hat onto her head. "I was stupid enough to think I could be friends with you again!" she muttered loudly.  
  
"We've *never* been friends, Emily! I drugged you, took you hostage and you fell in love for God knows what reason. We've been lovers and enemies, but *never* friends Emily! And as usual, you're naïve enough to think that with a smile and a few pretty words, you can make up for the fact that you ripped my heart out and stomped on it and *everything* I thought we stood for when you left me for *him*! So don't you *dare* insult my intelligence by thinking I could *ever* pretend to be happy for you now! That I could *ever* be your *friend*!" he spat out.  
  
Emily stared at him, amazed at the hurt that flooded her with those words. Before he could see the tears that suddenly sprang to her eyes, she snatched up her coat and left the apartment.  
  
Outside, on the other side of the door, where he couldn't see her, the first sob rent past her throat. She shoved a fist into her mouth to curb the noise. She took a deep shaky breath, desperately trying to pull herself together, and head held high, exited the building, the only sign of her distress trails of giant salty tears tracking down her cheeks. She was totally unaware that behind the door, silent tears had been rolling down Zander's cheeks as well.  
  
TBC...  
  
A/N: Don't forget to Review! 


	4. Chapter 4

Show: General Hospital  
  
Title: Change is Good Chapter 4  
  
Disclaimer: See Chapter 1  
  
A/N: Thank you for all your comments. I need to single out one reviewer in particular:  
-BELLE: I totally understand how you feel; I feel that way as well, but this story was started while I was still pining for Zander and Emily to get back together, so it's going to be reflected at later stages. Maybe I'll write a story just for Zander and a character that totally deserves him.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap.  
  
Sonny grit his teeth, but continued to concentrate on the reports spread out before him.  
  
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap.  
  
Sonny heaved a sigh of frustration as the bottom end of the number-2 pencil continued to hit the cherry wood tabletop. "Jason!"  
  
Jason's ice-blue eyes met his bestfriend's. "What?" he asked, continuing to tap the pencil.  
  
Sonny indicated his friend's erratic motions with a sweep of his hand.  
  
Immediately, the tapping stopped.   
  
Sonny paused, waiting expectantly for his bestfriend to spill. When it became evident that his partner would be content to just sit there and stare into space he asked, "Well?" punctuating the question by lifting a dark eyebrow.  
  
Never one to rush conversation, Jason paused as if considering his words. "Have you ever been talked down to?" he asked finally.  
  
Sonny's brow furrowed. **What the hell?** he was thinking, although he answered soberly, "More times than I'd care to remember." He couldn't help but think of the many occasions when people were more than happy to accept his generous donations to their numerous causes – on condition of anonymity of course; they didn't want their reputations tainted by the public knowledge of accepting funds from PC's notorious kingpin. "People sure are self-righteous and hypocritical," he added.  
  
It was Jason's turn to look confused. "No, I don't mean like that. I mean, have you ever been talked down to – scolded – and known that you deserved it?"  
  
That gave Sonny pause. "No," he finally admitted.  
  
"Ok," replied Jason. He set down the pencil that he had been twirling in his hands and picked up the set of papers strewn in front of him, figuring he should at least pretend to be interested by the numbers and figures.   
  
But Sonny was intrigued. He was curious as to why Jason was acting so out of character; what had made him ask the question in the first place. "Well?" he asked. "You start off this conversation and all you've got to say is, 'Ok'? What happened?"  
  
Reluctantly, Jason began to open up to his bestfriend about the events of the last two days – his late night encounter with Liz in Kelly's; meeting up on the docks and the subsequent argument, ending with Zander's scolding in Jake's.  
  
"Whoo," whistled Sonny, his trademark dimples flashing across his handsome face. "You really dug yourself a deep one here, Morgan."  
  
"You think this is funny? This is serious, Sonny. Zander Smith's a punk – he doesn't give a damn about anybody but himself. Why can't Elizabeth see that?" he asked.  
  
The dimples disappeared. "I don't know what you think is up, Jason, but Elizabeth Webber is not your concern anymore. That ship set sail a long time ago," his friend replied. "She's a big girl, she can take care of herself."  
  
"You mean like she did with Ric?" he all but spat.  
  
Sonny lifted a brow. "Why do you care so much?" he didn't even need his friend to answer; he already knew the answer. His former sister-in-law had a strange way of slipping beneath your skin. It was a little strange to know that after all this time, after all that had happened, she still had a spot there. It was the truth for him, it was the truth for Jason – one look in his eyes told him so.  
  
"I don't know," Jason replied truthfully, grabbing his jacket and slipping on his gloves. "I just know that I do."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The jingle of the bell over the door signaled yet another early morning customer. Liz looked up in surprise to Jason step over the threshold, stamping slush from his boots onto the welcome mat.   
  
Their eyes met and Elizabeth barely resisted the urge to cut her eyes at him or to stick her tongue out like a disgruntled eight-year-old.   
  
Jason strode towards the counter and took a seat, but Liz scuttled to the other side of the diner, leaving Penny to wait on Jason. As the pretty waitress filled his coffee cup, he watched Elizabeth from the corner of his eye as she waited on a couple in the corner booth, her beatific smile lighting the room.   
  
Penny watched him watch Elizabeth, who blatantly ignored the gorgeous dirty-blonde, with a knowing smile. She wondered what else had happened with those two. She shook her head as she went to the kitchen to get Jason's late breakfast.  
  
She had avoided the counter as long as she could, but a customer wanted a muffin and she had no choice but to venture to the counter to get it. Keeping her eyes and mind on the task, Liz lifted the lid, taking painstaking care not to look at him. Just as she had wrapped the muffin in the napkin and placed it on the plate, Jason spoke, his voice throwing her conversation a bit.  
  
"Can we talk?" he asked.  
  
Elizabeth paused and for the first time since they'd locked eyes, looked at him. "I have nothing to say to you."  
  
"Please?" he asked.   
  
Liz could feel her resolve cracking. "I've got customers, Jason." Just then Penny came back with Jason's breakfast – eggs over easy on whole-wheat toast and four strips of extra-crispy bacon. "Eat fast, we wouldn't want your eggs to get cold," she muttered before turning her back on him.  
  
Jason bit his tongue and dug into his breakfast, and he could swear he heard Penny giggle, but when he looked up, the tiny Asian American had scurried off to another customer.   
  
Reluctantly striding back to the counter, all the customers waited on, she busied herself with refilling the salt and pepper shakers, blatantly ignoring the fact that Jason continued to leisurely eat his breakfast less than a foot before her.   
  
Finally finished, Jason pushed away his plate and took a final sip of his coffee. "Now can we talk?" he asked.   
  
The bell above the door rang again and a bundled customer strode in. "Nope. Move it, Morgan. Your butt's taking up space."  
  
"Order five, Liz!" spoke up Louie, one of the cooks, from behind in the kitchen.   
  
Liz cut her eyes at him one more time and turned her back on him and went to serve her customers.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Nikolas heard the front door close and he hurried from the living room. He took in the appearance of his fiancée with blatant relief, folding her slender form to him and pressing a kiss to her hair.   
  
"Emily. I was worried. Where were you?" he scolded gently.  
  
Emily stepped away, shrugged off her coat and pulled off her snow-flecked hat. Her tears had long since dried, but she still couldn't help but think of her morning. "I spent the night on Elizabeth's couch," she admitted, running a hand though her still sleep tousled hair.   
  
Nik sobered, knowing that if she had been at Liz's, she'd most likely ran into her ex-husband. Hell! Taking a closer look at her, he could see her spirit was flagging and part of him knew it didn't have everything to do with their fight the night before. He *knew* she'd had a run in with Zander. Before long, a frown found its way to his face. "What did he do?" he asked softly, his tone like a velvet covered iron fist, leaving no room for argument.  
  
Emily looked away and instead of answering, made her way into the spacious living room. She didn't even want to think of what had happened herself, much less discuss it with Nikolas. Nikolas would have no sympathy for the pain that had etched Zander's words and had swirled in his dark eyes. She shook her head and turned to her fiancé, who had followed her. "I came back here to talk about last night," she replied, lifting her chin and meeting his gaze. Too many times, they'd had the same conversation – she wasn't lying when she told Elizabeth she was tired of this crap -- and never was the subject truly resolved; it just kept getting pushed to the backburner until she brought it back up.   
  
Nikolas nodded. "Is this your way of avoiding my question?" he asked.  
  
Emily looked at him incredulously. "I can't believe this."   
  
"What?"  
  
"Do you even have to ask?" she asked him, folding her arms across her chest.   
  
"Is it unreasonable for me to ask what happened when my fiancée tells me she spent the night sleeping on her ex-husband's couch?"  
  
"This is *not* about Zander, Nikolas."  
  
"Isn't it?"  
  
"No! It's about you and me!" she exclaimed, her anger and frustration threatening to bubble over. "It's about every niggling frustration I've had since you asked me to marry you!" she admitted, feeling relieved as the words practically spit off her tongue.  
  
Nikolas was taken aback and he paused, surprised as her words.   
  
"What are we about, Nikolas?" she asked, feeling fresh tears pricking at her eyes. "When we first we got together, it was about goodness and patience and *love*. But then again, that's when you believed everything was going to be alright – that everything would just magically fall into place for you. But *now*… now I just don't know. Everything's about money and power and prestige and image." Nikolas's mouth fell open in shock. "I don't know you… and I have a feeling that you really don't know *me*. I thought that maybe if I said it enough times you would finally understand that none of it matters. But you don't *listen*, Nik… I don't think you've ever *listened* to me – looked past what my mouth is saying and look at what my eyes, what my heart is saying. Now, you just pick fights over every silly thing, read too much into conversations, jump to conclusions…" the words were rolling of her tongue as smoothly as the tears began to sluice down her face.   
  
"What are you saying," he asked stony faced when she paused in her tirade.   
  
Emily's doe eyes widened. She didn't quite know what she was saying. "I wasn't kidding, Nikolas," she finally replied, dashing the tears from her cheeks. "Find me when you've found yourself. When you've made everything *perfect*."  
  
Nikolas shook his head saying nothing. Emily's bottom lip trembled as her Prince Charming turned on his heel and left her standing alone in the drafty room. For the second time that morning, her sobs rent the air as yet another man she loved turned his back on her.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Emily blindly stepped off the boat onto the pier, running so quickly towards Kelly's that she ran smack-dab into a brick wall.  
  
Well, a pliable brick wall; a wall of muscle.   
  
Jason's reflexes reacted quickly, his arms steadying both as he tried to halt the unknown assailant's momentum from sending them crashing to the slushy ground.  
  
"Emily?" he asked incredulously, holding the sobbing figure away from him in recognition.  
  
Emily's brown eyes, swimming with tears, met her brother's, her sobs growing louder as she launched herself into his arms, seeking comfort from the one person who had always been there for her.  
  
Awkwardly, Jason clasped her trembling body to him, stroking her hair, trying to give her comfort, wondering what had happened to cause his baby sister such distress.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Elizabeth's eyes widened in surprise as the door opened and Jason stepped inside, holding his little sister close to him, her face practically buried in his shoulder.   
  
Liz hurried over to the duo as Jason set Emily in a seat and sat down opposite her, holding her hand in his. "What happened?" she asked, stroking her friend's now hopelessly tangled snow damp hair.  
  
Jason shrugged, her concern for his sister evident. "She literally ran into me on the docks."  
  
Elizabeth knelt and took her friend's tear-streaked face in her face. "Em, what happened?" she asked concerned.  
  
"It got worse."  
  
"What got worse, sweetie?"  
  
"The argument with Nik. I think the engagement's off," she sobbed.  
  
"Aww, sweetie," sighed Elizabeth, cradling her friend's head.   
  
"Miss?" called a customer, holding up his empty cup.  
  
Liz frowned. "Hold it, buddy. I'm on my break."  
  
His eyes widened in shock but Penny hurried over to refill his cup before he got irate and Liz's temper ignited.  
  
Jason watched in awe as Elizabeth folded Emily in her arms, rocking her in her embrace as her friend soaked her sweater with tears. He felt a shock of humility – he had been clueless on how to comfort his sister, but Elizabeth was calming her with ease.   
  
Finally, Emily lifted her head and wiped away at her tears. "I'm sorry," she blubbered embarrassingly.  
  
"Shush, Em," replied Elizabeth, stroking her friend's wavy locks.  
  
"Wow, those mothering instincts really are kicking into high gear," quipped Em, with a watery chuckle.   
  
Liz rolled her eyes and smiled, wiping the tears from her friend's eyes. "Just shut up and let me mother."  
  
TBC...  
  
A/N: Don't forget to review! 


	5. Chapter 5

Show: General Hospital  
  
Title: Change is Godd: Chapter 5  
  
Disclaimer: see Chapter 1  
  
A/N: Thanks for all your wonderful comments. For all of you who love Em/Jas scenes, here is another....  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Emily loosened her scarf from around her neck as Jason closed the door to his penthouse. After their divorce and Courtney's subsequent departure from Port Charles, all the furniture that she had chosen had been donated to charity. Gone were her silly rugs and throws and comforters and knickknacks. The room was almost as stark and impersonal as a hotel room. Even more so, considering Jason spent as little time there as possible – too many memories. The only things remaining were his beat-up leather Lay-Z boy and his pool table, which Johnny had resurrected from storage.   
  
She shrugged off her coat and turned to her brother, who was watching her carefully.  
  
"You ok?" he asked, his voice husky with concern. He didn't like to see her cry – ever. She'd been through so much pain already and she was such a good person, she didn't deserve any more. He felt like swimming out to Spoon Island and beating the Cassidine Prince to a pulp.  
  
Emily smiled softly. He hadn't asked her in a patronizing tone – his voice had been filled with genuine concern. "I'll be fine," she replied softly. She strode over to the pool table, running her fingertips along the felt. "I'm sorry about having a major meltdown back there. What a way to welcome home my big brother, huh?" she asked, her face flushing with embarrassment.  
  
"No, it's fine," he replied, shrugging it off and walking over to his sister. "You wanna talk about it?" he asked.  
  
Emily paused, biting her lip as she considered whether or not she wanted to tell him what happened. As much as he loved her and respected her ability as an adult to make her own decisions, he *was* her older brother and she didn't want him angry with Nikolas who, even despite being such an idiot, was foremost in her mind. "No," she finally answered, shaking her head. "I'd rather not."  
  
"Ok," he conceded defeat. Jason paused, his gaze looking deep into Emily's eyes. "Listen, if you wanna crash here instead of heading back to the Quartermaine Estate, the guest bedroom's yours, you know."  
  
Emily smiled at her brother. Who ever had said Jason had no feeling or ability to pick up on what others felt didn't know what they were talking about. "Thanks, Jas."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
From inside their room in Wyndemere, Nikolas Cassidine cursed himself and his ignorance. He never should have turned away from her after she'd poured her soul to him. She hadn't lied to him, hadn't sugar-coated the reality like so many had done for him all his life – she had been genuine, completely honest.   
  
And he couldn't handle the truth.   
  
He didn't want to handle the truth.   
  
Maybe she was right, he was deluding himself thinking that he could right this colossal wrong Helena had committed. Everything couldn't be perfect.   
  
Couldn't it?  
  
The niggling voice was back.  
  
The voice that had been drilled into him since the day he was born – he is a Cassidine Prince and he deserves *nothing* but perfection.  
  
Why couldn't Emily see that?  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
If Elizabeth could see him now, she would know that something was wrong. He, Zander Smith, troublemaker extraordinaire, was cleaning his apartment from top to bottom. He had vacuumed the dark-blue carpet, dusted the blinds, wiped and bleached every counter-top and polished the few wooden tables they had. He had flipped his mattress, laundered all the sheets, organized his closet in terms of season then by colour then by dress-type – T-shirts, button-down, sweaters etc; he had then done the same for Elizabeth's. He only cleaned when he was angry or frustrated. And after the morning he'd had, he was experiencing plenty of both emotions.   
  
Zander heaved a sigh of fatigue and paused in his latest enterprise – mopping the bathroom floor.  
  
Why the hell did he let Emily affect him so? He should just have kept his mouth shut – told her 'You're welcome' when she thanked him for breakfast and be done with it. But no, he had to ask what she was doing there. And then, to make matters worse, the Cassidine Prince himself had answered the question.  
  
But it didn't end there – he had to press the subject, only to have his heart ripped out yet again at her words.  
  
Why the hell did he let one slip of a girl get so far under his skin and *stay* there?  
  
The answer was so simple: he was just a glutton for punishment.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Jason called Sonny at the warehouse to tell him he was taking the rest of the day off. Things had been going pretty slow and his friend hadn't pushed to find out why, but had promised to call him if anything important popped up.   
  
Emily had crawled upstairs to the proffered bedroom and had conked out. For the second time, someone other than herself had to remove her boots and cover her while she settled into a deep necessary sleep.  
  
From the doorway, Jason watched his little sister in her slumber. Even now, she was not totally relaxed, a slight frown between her brows indicating she was dreaming about something. If he stepped closer, he could see the salty tracks her tears had made on her cheeks and the spider legs from her smudged mascara.   
  
Jason felt an insurgence of anger so swift and fiery that it surprised even him. Somehow, Nikolas Cassidine was responsible for this – for making Emily lose control of herself in public – had made her cry so bad it seemed she would drown in her tears.   
  
He clenched his fists, barely able to keep from striding out the door and over to Wyndemere.   
  
Just then, there was a knock on the door from downstairs and Max, the guard stationed outside, stuck his head in and called: "Jason, you have a visitor."  
  
Jason frowned, not really in the mood for visitors, but curious nonetheless as to whom would be visiting him.  
  
Turning away from the threshold of the bedroom, he closed the door quietly and headed downstairs. "Who is it?" he asked, striding into the living room.   
  
Max caught his boss's eye, curious himself to see what his reaction would be. "It's Elizabeth Webber."  
  
Jason paused, a part of him exhilarated that she was here. But, of course, his features displayed only disinterest and indifference. "Send her in." Jason watched, hands across his chest as Max swung open the door with a smile and indicated that she should enter.  
  
Elizabeth accepted the invitation with a reluctant smile and a mannerly, "Thank you, Max," clutching her package to her chest even as Max closed the door behind her and she lifted her eyes to meet the intensity of Jason's blue-eyed gaze.  
  
Almost struck dumb by the awareness of his masculine beauty, Elizabeth held out the package to him, the barrage of memories at being in his apartment again making her forget about the reason she was angry with him *now* and think about what had made her angry with him in the first place. She tried not to look at the picture window that looked out to the city, the site where they'd had the fight before he let her walk out of his life. "I brought you some lunch since I didn't think you'd want to leave to get it. It's not much – just sandwiches and some vegetable soup."  
  
Jason kept his eyes on hers as he approached her. Stopping less than three feet away, he took the package from her proffered hand. "Thank you."   
  
Try as she might, Liz couldn't help looking around. She was a little surprised to see how bare his apartment was, but her eyes fell on the beat up Lay-Z boy and his pool table with fondness. Mentally, she shook her head, trying to keep her thoughts from straying to the numerous pool games they'd played, the numerous small makeout sessions they'd had in the chair during the few hours he had carved out for her in the week or so she had stayed in his penthouse with Zander. She brought her thoughts back to the matter at hand, trying to grasp the fact that she was still angry about his assumptions about Zander. Unwinding her scarf from her neck and folding it in her hands she asked, "How is she?"  
  
Still holding the package he replied, "She's fine. Sleeping upstairs."  
  
Elizabeth nodded in satisfaction. "Did you two talk about what got her so upset?"  
  
Jason shook his head. "No. Do you know?" he asked pointedly.  
  
Elizabeth hesitated. "It's not my business to say…" she trailed off pointedly.  
  
Jason nodded in understanding.  
  
Before things could get more awkward, Liz fumbled for an excuse. "Listen, Jason, I better get going. Tell Em that I stopped by, will you?"  
  
Before he could even reply, she turned her back on him and headed for the door.   
  
"Elizabeth, wait!"   
  
Reluctantly, she turned around to face him.  
  
"I want to apologise for my behaviour yesterday," he spoke quickly. Liz lifted a perfectly arched brow pointedly. "I had no right to just butt in your life like that and I'm sorry." Blue eyes met blue. He knew that he should probably shut up now, but some invisible force was doing all the talking. "I just worry about you, Elizabeth. I was looking out for you."  
  
Her eyes widened at his admission, but she set her jaw and replied. "You're right, you don't have any right to butt into my life anymore, Jason Morgan. And, I don't need you to 'look' out for me – I'm a grown woman and I can look out for myself." She paused, before her blue eyes started to twinkle at him. "But, apology accepted nonetheless."  
  
Jason could feel the rare beginnings of a smile lifting the corners of his mouth as Elizabeth smiled at him.  
  
"See you later, Morgan," she said finally, wondering if he would remember the significance of her statement, before winding her scarf back around her neck and exiting the apartment, unable to keep the smile off her face and the hop from her step as she passed an all-too-knowing Max stationed in the hallway.   
  
"See you later, Webber," Jason whispered in reply. Of course he had never forgotten.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The moment Elizabeth stepped through the door and saw the spotless apartment, she knew something was wrong and with her heart beating rapidly with trepidation she closed the door behind her and called out, "Zander?"  
  
When her roommate didn't answer her, she ventured further into the apartment, following the blaring music emanating from his bedroom. "Zander!"  
  
What she found gave her pause. Zander was stripped from head to toe, still clad in his low-slung pajama bottoms from this morning, but a sweat-logged grey T-shirt was carelessly thrown on the neatly made bed, and he was pounding the life out of heavy Everlast bag he'd hung from a hook in the ceiling. He showed no sign that he'd either seen or heard her and his head whipped around in surprise as Elizabeth crossed to the stereo and switched the angry rock music off.  
  
Zander blatantly chose to ignore the curiosity in her eyes and instead, wiped the sweat from his brow and tried to catch his breath.  
  
Elizabeth smiled, trying to break the tension. "Why do I have a feeling that whoever you beating the crap outta has a huge resemblance to Nikolas Cassidine?"  
  
Zander smiled ruefully but all he said was: "Don't push it, Elizabeth. I don't wanna talk about it."  
  
She knew she should follow his advice but she ignored it and pressed on. "Don't wanna talk about what, Zander? Did something happen today that shouldn't have?"  
  
Zander looked at her incredulously.   
  
"Well?" she prodded impatiently. "I want to know what the hell happened today that had Emily crying a river and you cleaning the house from top to bottom like you're Rosie the Robot."  
  
Immediately, against his wish, Zander was concerned. "Emily was crying?"  
  
Elizabeth was struck with the realization that indeed, Zander did still care for Emily, indeed might still love her. She paused and surveyed him practically chomping at the bit and was convinced. "You still love her, don't you?" she blurted before she could stop herself.  
  
"Stop it."  
  
"You don't even have to say anything, because now I know the answer."  
  
"Can't you just leave it alone?"  
  
Elizabeth's hands rose to her hips, "No, Zander Smith, I cannot just leave it alone."  
  
"What do you want me to say, Elizabeth? What the hell is my admitting that I still love her going to do? Nothing! The fact of the matter is that Emily is with someone else. She *left* me for him. She's not coming back! And there's nothing that I *can* or *will* do to make it otherwise!" he sat at the foot of the bed and held his face in his hands in frustration.  
  
Not able to just stand and see him hurt, Elizabeth crossed to him and put her arms around his head, clasping it to her rounded stomach and running her hands through the sweat-dampened strands of hair at the nape of his neck. Trying to keep hold of his emotions, Zander wrapped his arms around her waist and pressed his face to her belly, seeking comfort from his family.   
  
Elizabeth couldn't help but think if Emily were there, she would make some wisecrack about her mothering instincts. But for now, she used them to give Zander comfort as well. He'd really been given the short end of the stick recently – first, the woman to whom he'd pledged his undying love and devotion had left him for his enemy, then his jealousy and distrust had thrust him into an alliance with Faith Roscoe sending him further into Sonny and Jason's bad books, not to mention the bad books of the PCPD, and to make matters worse, when he was set to pull off one of the greatest disappearing acts in Port Charles History, she bursts his bubble by telling him he was to be a father. Of course, her motives had been purely selfish. She'd had her Ric Blinders on, and was incapable of seeing past what he'd wanted for *them* to see that Zander was in desperate need of a saviour. She and their unborn child had been that saviour, but apparently their wings had not deposited him in a safe enough place and it seemed as if he were set for yet another Fall.  
  
"I'm sorry, Zander," she apologized, hugging him tighter.  
  
"Don't. The last thing I need from you, Webber, is pity."  
  
"The last thing I feel for you right now is pity. I'm angry with myself for not recognizing it earlier. For constantly forcing you to somehow stomach her presence –"  
  
"No… it's always a joy to be in Emily's presence," he reluctantly admitted mumbling against her stomach. "Even if she does hate me."  
  
"She doesn't hate you, Zander."  
  
"Well, if she didn't hate me yesterday, she certainly does today?" he replied.  
  
Elizabeth's fingers under his chin forced him to look up. "What's that supposed to mean? What happened between you two after I left for work this morning?"  
  
Reluctantly, Elizabeth listened as Zander gave a brief summary of his argument with Emily. "I was so angry and so pissed off that she could still make me feel this way; that she could still be so deep under my skin that I would even bother, 'cause she sure as hell doesn't seem to want to bother with me."  
  
Elizabeth stepped away from him and joined him at the edge of the bed, slowly digesting all he'd just told her. "Emily had a fight with Nikolas," she said softly.  
  
"I know. That's why she came over in the first place."  
  
"No, another one," she clarified; not sure telling Zander was the wisest thing to do. "She came into Kelly's with Jason, crying buckets. She didn't tell me exactly what happened, but she thinks the engagement's off."  
  
Despite the pain he knew it was causing Emily, he couldn't help but feel a soaring sense of jubilation. "That's too bad," he said sarcastically. "Why are you telling me all this?" he asked as an afterthought.  
  
Liz shrugged. "I have no idea. Listen Zander, I love all three of you. I can't stand to see any of you unhappy. I can't tell you what to do with what I just told you, but please, don't go seeking either Nik or Em out if all you want to do is make things worse."  
  
"Can't promise you anything," he answered, swallowing a knot of hurt in his throat. "I'm always the one who ends up messing up no matter how hard I try not to," he continued sadly before leaving Elizabeth alone in his room and heading for the shower.  
  
TBC...  
  
A/N: Don't forget to review! 


	6. Chapter 6

Show: General Hospital  
  
Title: Change is Good: Chapter 6  
  
Disclaimer: See Chapter 1  
  
A/N: Thank you very much for last chapter's comments. For those of you who might be wondering, I'll try to have a new chapter for LVdlC2 by the end of this week or in the early weekend (I haven't forgotten it, just trying to get some thoughts into order.)  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
For the second time that day, Emily awoke in a strange bed. She swung her feet over the side of the bed, but paused, trying to orient herself, before leaving the bed and heading downstairs. She cleared the last step to see her big brother nursing a beer in his beat up Lay-Z Boy absentmindedly watching a basketball game on his huge Plasma TV.   
  
"You really should consider getting rid of all this clutter, Morgan," she quipped sarcastically, indicating the practically sterile living room.   
  
Jason actually smiled at her attempt at comedy. "Very funny." He paused, running his blue eyes shrewdly over her from head-to-toe. "You feeling better?"  
  
Emily ducked her head in mild embarrassment and fiddled with the long sleeve of her sweater. "I'm fine. Starving though. I suppose it would be wishful thinking to wonder if you actually have anything edible on those shelves in the room some folks like to call a kitchen."  
  
He knew she was trying to deflect his concern for her with comedy, but it didn't bother him too much; she would talk when she was ready. "As a matter of fact, Ms. Sarcastic, I do happen to have food in the place some folks like to call a kitchen, as if you would know what a kitchen actually was, what with the privileged life you led out on the Quartermaine Estate," he shot back good-naturedly as he set his beer on the floor and headed over to the kitchen. Jason opened the fridge and took out the soup Elizabeth had brought over that afternoon before taking the sandwiches from the breadbasket that had been left behind when Alexis Davis moved out. "Elizabeth stopped by and brought us lunch," he explained.  
  
"That was sweet," Emily said, watching as he unwrapped the sandwiches and set one on a plate and pushed it towards her and he placed both portable containers in the microwave to warm up the soup. Emily hungrily bit into the sandwich – Turkey Club – as she realized she hadn't eaten since breakfast at seven thirty that morning, a full twelve hours ago as she glanced at her watch.  
  
After eating her fill, Emily pushed her empty soup bowl away and continued to fiddle with her sleeve. "You know," she began softly, "if you'd been anyone else, you would've been bugging me to find out what happened ten hours ago."  
  
Jason smiled softly. "You'd let me know what was going on when you were ready."  
  
Emily's doe-like brown eyes met her brother's ice-blue gaze. He had such a disarming way of looking at her. He never made her feel uncomfortable or scared, though; he always looked at her with love and caring and genuine respect and most importantly, he never judged her – he treated her like an adult, like she had actual working grey matter between her ears. "I'm ready."  
  
As he listened to her pour her heart out, he absentmindedly reached for her hand, rubbing his thumb across her knuckles. At one stage, the other had reached out to wipe away the tears that sluiced down her cheek from the corner of her eye. As she completed her story, her eyes begged him for understanding.   
  
Jason wasn't exactly the best person to seek advice on love from, what with his disastrous track record where the opposite sex was concerned. All the women he'd been with had burned him because he couldn't be someone they'd wanted him to be; Brenda exempted of course, because, technically, a marriage of convenience didn't really count. But for the sake of his sister, he tried his hardest to be objective; though he would rather she forgot about both of them and enter a convent.  
  
"Have you told either of them what you told me?"  
  
Emily shook her head in bewilderment as she wiped her face. "Are you kidding me? The mere mention of Zander's name sends Nikolas into a fit and Zander… well he hates me, with good reason."  
  
For all his faults, Jason didn't think Zander hated Emily. He told her so.  
  
"Well, if he doesn't he should. He was right; I was selfish. I should've thought about what hooking up with Nikolas would've done to him. "  
  
"Emily, staying in a loveless marriage wasn't the right answer."  
  
"It wasn't a loveless marriage," she defended. "I loved Zander; I just loved Nikolas more and I broke my marriage vows, Jason. That was unacceptable. I *hurt* him. And I was so captivated with the thought of being in love with Nikolas that I didn't even think twice of what it was doing to Zander. Nikolas tries to make it seem that Zander is a grown man and he's in charge of his destiny and he's just a big loser because he acts out and does stupid things, but don't we all? Don't we all lose rational thought when we're hurting?"  
  
"Are you trying to tell me that you think all of Smith's shenanigans in the past are your fault?"  
  
Emily buried her face in her hands, "I dunno, Jas. I just don't know *anything* anymore. All I know is that I'm tired and so damned confused my head hurts."   
  
Jason awkwardly squeezed her hand. "You should try to get some rest."  
  
"No," she shook her head stubbornly. "I've slept enough today to stay awake for a week."  
  
"Ok," he replied. "Well, let's go do something. Ice-skating or something," he suggested.  
  
"You? Ice-skating?" she asked incredulously.  
  
"Maybe not *me*, but I could watch you."  
  
"No," replied Emily, finding a giggle bubbling to her lips.   
  
"So what?"  
  
"Let's go to Jake's."  
  
Jason lifted an eyebrow, not sure that was the best place to take his sister to cheer her up, but at the pleading look in her brown eyes he relented. "Sure, why not?"  
  
It was only as he paused to open the door to the bar for her did he remember that Zander worked at Jake's as a bartender.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Emily realized her mistake the second she laid eyes on the man behind the bar. Zander was engaged in animated conversation with two bottle-blondes at the counter. One of the blondes laughed at something he said and she threw her head back giving him a view of her ample cleavage, while the other one trailed a blood red claw-like nail along his collar.  
  
Zander must have felt her eyes on his because he turned to the door only to stare in bewilderment at Emily standing just inside the threshold of the door. Once again, Zander felt the pain that had become the norm whenever he was around her, but also the flood of guilt when he thought about their confrontation that morning. He knew he should but he couldn't. that was, until the blonde with the claws reached out to stroke his cheek and turned his attention back to her.  
  
Emily wasn't sure how she felt. She felt the guilt, sure and also the tingling awareness that had begun to manifest itself since she'd seen him half-naked at breakfast and her mind couldn't help but remind her that she knew the body so well. But she was absolutely unprepared for the jealousy that barreled through her as she watched Zander throw himself back into the conversation with the two busty blondes, a mask of indifference where his soon-to-be-ex-wife was concerned. She was prepared for the guilt, even the anger, but definitely not the jealousy.  
  
Jason shrewdly watched the eye contact between the former couple. He lifted a comforting hand to his sister's shoulder. "I don't think this is such a great idea, Em. We should leave. It completely slipped my mind that he bartended here."  
  
"No," Emily shook her head and turned to her brother. "I'm not going to leave just because Zander works here. We came here to have some fun!" she hung her coat up on the rack and confidently strode fully into the bar, her brother reluctantly behind her. As he passed the bar, he caught Zander's eye and frowned.  
  
All night Jason watched them.   
  
Zander's conversation with the two women was obviously growing more suggestive whilst Emily wrapped practically every other man around her finger, pretending to be a novice, then absolutely kicking ass in pool. Jason watched from a corner, there to step in incase someone got too rowdy or tried to overstep their bounds, but he basically left her alone and watched with detached amusement as both tried to act as though the other wasn't there.   
  
As he nursed his beer and kept an eye on the game in which Em hadn't even let the guy take a shot yet, his cellphone rang.  
  
"Morgan," he said Borg-tone.   
  
Imagine his surprise when he heard the voice say: "Hi."  
  
It was Elizabeth.  
  
"Hi… this is a surprise," he said slowly, after getting over the initial surprise.  
  
"Yeah, I figured," she replied. Back in her apartment, she was twirling a wavy lock of hair around her finger, trying to keep from smiling like a giddy schoolgirl. She cleared her throat. "Well, I was just calling to check in on Emily," she lied, when in reality, she'd called on a spur of the moment to just hear his voice, even if he did answer Borg-style. "How is she?"  
  
"She's fine," he replied, keeping an eye on Emily. "Though, I don't think you'd ever guess what she's doing now…" he trailed off suggestively.  
  
"What?" she asked.  
  
"Guess," he invited playfully.  
  
"Tell me," she begged, flopping on her couch, unable to keep the smile from spreading across her face.  
  
"Guess," he invited.  
  
"I dunno! I give up!"  
  
"Well, technically, it's only called giving up if you attempt to do something."  
  
Elizabeth paused. "Did you just make a witty comment, Jason Morgan?" she asked.  
  
"I do believe it was a bit of a joke, Elizabeth," he deadpanned.  
  
Elizabeth guffawed and on the other end Jason flat-out laughed, ignoring the baffled looks of alarm from the people as the watched the Corinthos Enforcer laugh. Emily looked up in mild surprise and Zander looked as though he'd spotted an alien. All were wondering who it was on the other end of that conversation that had that effect on him.  
  
When she'd calmed down some she asked, "So, are you going to tell me or not?"  
  
"She's at Jake's, playing pool."  
  
Elizabeth's initial reaction was: "*Emily* Quartermaine at *Jake's* playing pool! Get out, Morgan!" Only when she'd taken a few more seconds to analyse Jason's statement did she continue, "Oh, crap! Zander bartends at Jake's, Jason. Taking her there wasn't exactly the wisest thing to do."  
  
Jason had calmed down some and his look told the others to back off and mind their own business. "I know that now. But they're completely ignoring each other… well at least trying to," he explained.   
  
"Is it working?" she asked.   
  
"I don't think so. I keep waiting for one of them to throw a tantrum."  
  
Elizabeth giggled. "Someone's on a roll."  
  
"I do try," he deadpanned yet again.  
  
"Well, at least they're not at each other's throats."  
  
"Yet."  
  
"Try not to be so positive, Jason," implored Liz sarcastically. The two paused. "Anyways, I gotta go," she rushed unsure of what else to say.  
  
"Sure."  
  
Before they hung up she asked. "Coming in for breakfast tomorrow?" Elizabeth practically held her breath.  
  
Reluctantly, Jason answered. "No, Sonny and I have a breakfast meeting with our partners. But… it'll be through by lunch," he added.  
  
He could actually hear the smile in her voice. "Great, tomorrow." She hung up before he could say anything else.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Zander good-naturedly shoved the two blondes from the bar into the snow, chuckling as Sabine, the bustier of the two, blew him a sloppy kiss and professed her undying love for him, whilst trying to keep her drinking partner, Patsy, from falling to the snow. He shut the heavy door and locked it, turning back to the only remaining customers, Jason and Emily, playing pool at one of the tables.  
  
Emily had made a fortune that night but her luck wasn't holding out with Jason – who'd taught her to play in the first place. Wiping his hands in his towel, Zander couldn't help but watch the concentration on her beautiful face in rapt fascination.  
  
Emily cursed softly as she missed her shot and Jason grinned as he stepped up to the table to sink the eight ball easily.   
  
"Game over, folks," called Zander.  
  
Jason and Emily looked around in bewilderment. They hadn't been aware that they were the only ones left.  
  
"Sorry, Smith," Jason actually apologized, taking Emily's stick and his and leaning them against the wall.  
  
Zander shrugged. "No prob."  
  
"It's late, Em," said Jason, checking his watch. It was just after one in the morning. "Let's go."  
  
Emily nodded. All night she'd barely caught fleeting glances of Zander. He ignored her as completely as before as he tallied the night's earnings. Emily accepted her coat from her brother and followed him as Zander directed them to the back of the bar and held open the door for them. Jason moved past without a word but some reason Emily paused and finally met his gaze. She could see the tendon pulsing in the side of her neck. There were suddenly so many things she wanted to say to him, and indeed she opened her mouth a few times to voice those thoughts but, in the end, instead she whispered, "Good night, Zander."  
  
He didn't even nod or bat an eyelash in acknowledgement. He simply stepped back and quietly closed the door in her face.  
  
TBC...  
  
A/N: Don't forget to review! Also, as I do with LVdlC2, if you wish for me to update you when the new chapter's been posted online, just leave your email address and I'll make sure I let you know!  
  
Cara 


	7. Chapter 7

Show: General Hospital  
  
Title: Change is Good: Chapter 7  
  
Disclaimer: See Chapter 1  
  
A/N: Thank you for the last chapter's comments. Don't worry ZEm fans; things will get better.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
Kelly's (the next day)  
  
Liz couldn't help it, but she couldn't wait to see him. As the day gradually approached midday, each time the little bell above the door jingled, she looked up in breathless anticipation, only to be disappointed – this time was no exception.   
  
Nikolas Cassidine ambled up to the counter, a small bag in his hand. Elizabeth took one look at him and was automatically struck with concern for her friend. His face was pale and drawn and he looked exhausted.   
  
"Are you alright?"  
  
The look he leveled her clearly stated that he wasn't. Since Emily had walked out, he hadn't been sleeping well. Since this second bigger fight, sleep had completely evaded him and his guilt and anger was sapping what little energy he had left. He was struck with a need to talk to her, to explain his actions, but something kept him back.   
  
He set the bag on the counter. "I figured Emily might need some of her clothes, so I packed some. You can give them to her when you get home."  
  
"Emily's not staying with me, Nikolas," Liz explained, although she took the bag from him.  
  
Nik looked surprised. "She went back to the Quartermaine's?" he asked, knowing Edward would most likely rub it in her face that they were on the rocks.  
  
"Nope," Liz shook her head. "Jason's back in town. She's staying with him at his penthouse."  
  
Sure enough, the doorbell jingled again and who should duck into the diner than Morgan himself.  
  
Upon spying Nikolas at the counter with Liz, his eyes narrowed and his fists subconsciously clenched. He slowly made his way up to the counter, never taking his eyes off the Cassidine Prince, who had turned to face the Corinthos Enforcer.   
  
"Jason," Nikolas greeted apprehensively.   
  
Jason said nothing, unsure if words would cause him to want him to beat the Prince of Nothing to a pulp.   
  
Nikolas sighed in mild frustration. "I guess you'll see that Emily gets her things?" he inquired of Liz, who nodded, before he turned around and left the diner, conscious that Jason's eyes never left his back on his way through the door.   
  
"I guess I should be thanking my lucky stars I don't have to call the police to report a murder," Elizabeth quipped, holding the small bag out to Jason, who barely cracked a smile.   
  
He took it from her in mild curiosity.   
  
"Nikolas thought Emily might want some of her things," she explained.  
  
"How thoughtful," Jason muttered sarcastically in reply, taking a seat at the counter.   
  
Elizabeth automatically turned over the cup in front of him and poured him some coffee. "How was your morning?" she asked conversationally.  
  
"Productive," Jason cryptically replied.  
  
Inwardly, her curiosity was pricked, but she knew better than to pry.  
  
"I'm sure my afternoon will be better," he smoothly continued.  
  
"Oh, why's that?" she asked, meeting his clear blue eyes.  
  
"Do you even have to ask?"  
  
Elizabeth could feel her cheeks flushing.   
  
Jason calmly sipped his coffee.  
  
"Things really have changed," she murmured.   
  
Jason looked up. "How so?"  
  
She set the coffee pot down and laid a hand against her hip. "Jason Morgan just made me blush."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Zander wasn't sure why the hell he was doing this. He felt like Daniel going into the lion's den. This lion's den being Harborview Towers, the domain of a man who he'd tried to kill more than once, all to see a woman who he was sure hated him with every fiber of her being.  
  
As he stepped off the elevator, he could feel his knees practically quaking. He was unarmed but bound to run into one of Sonny's many guards. They all held a hatred in their hearts for anyone who'd been close to Faith Roscoe – that crazy bitch had toyed with them too many times. Sure enough, a guard was stationed outside Penthouse 4, indicating the Master of the house was in residence – Mr. Sonny Corinthos himself. He could feel Johnny O'Brien's cold surprised gaze on him and he was surprised that the guard hadn't shot him on sight. Instead, he held his head high and strode past the guard to stand before the door of Penthouse 2.  
  
"Jason isn't home," called out O'Brien.  
  
"I'm not here to see Morgan," Zander replied, presenting his back to the burly guard and lifting his hand to knock.  
  
Emily wasn't entirely surprised to hear the knock on the door. More than likely it was one of the guards checking up on her. She never expected to swing open the door and find herself face to face with her soon-to-be ex-husband.  
  
For long indeterminable seconds, the two simply stood there, gazes never leaving each other's faces. Johnny could see the uncertainty creeping into Emily's face and he stepped forward, ready to tell Smith to get lost, when she stepped back from the door and allowed him in.  
  
Johnny didn't know quite how to take that, but he knew Jason wouldn't be too pleased that Smith was in his home. He stepped back beside the door outside Sonny's apartment. It wasn't his job to meddle in his boss's sister's affairs.  
  
Inside Jason's penthouse, Emily subconsciously tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear as she regarded her husband. She wished she looked more glamorous, but for now she was clad in a grey T-shirt that belonged to Jason and was two sizes too big and her jeans. Zander turned towards her; mindful that this was the first time in more than a year that he'd been inside Jason's apartment – the last time, of course, being before life had thrown a monkey wrench in his plans.  
  
Instead, he chose to meet his wife's eyes. He swallowed and then heaved a sigh and began. "I spent most of the night and this morning thinking. Thinking about last night, thinking about yesterday at breakfast, thinking about the day I married you, thinking about the day I saw you back in Port Charles, about your Prom… about the first time we made love…" he cursed silently as his voice cracked. "I came to a conclusion… I still love you, Emily." Her eyes widened at that. "I *do*, and there's not a damn thing that I can do about that. You're under my skin, Ms. Quartermaine," he continued ruefully, "and all I can seem to do is *think* about you. That's never going to change.  
  
"But one thing I *don't* need from you or anybody, for that matter, is *pity* -"  
  
"I don't pity you, Zander," Emily broke in.  
  
"Yes, Emily, you *do*." Zander clenched his jaw; he needed a moment to collect his thoughts. "You *do*. I hear it in your voice every time you make a half-hearted attempt to carry on a conversation…."  
  
"What would you rather me do, Zander? Hate you?" she asked in confusion.  
  
"I'd much rather want you to hate me than put me in the position where I feel terrible because of the way I've treated you, Emily! God knows I deserve to hate you!"  
  
There was nothing she could do. She couldn't run this time. She knew she didn't deserve to run away. Zander had to have his full say and it was now.   
  
But he was running out of steam. At this point in his life, he couldn't sit back and deliver blows and not have her defend herself. The old Zander -- the boy -- would have taken advantage of the situation. The man he was now, though he was aching inside, wouldn't do such a thing. He asked the question that had been on his mind for months now. "Why'd you leave me, Em? All I ever did was love you…. You made me want to be a better person…. Did that mean nothing to you?" he was close to tears by now.  
  
Emily couldn't look him in the face. She wrapped her arms around her waist and said nothing.   
  
Zander's jaw clenched. "I never took you for a coward, Emily Quartermaine. I guess that's just another thing I was wrong about."  
  
Emily's eyes narrowed. "It's times like this when you turn spiteful and vindictive that I know why I left."  
  
"I think after all the crap you put me through that I deserve a little spitefulness," Zander shot back. "You betrayed the vows we made before *God* with a man that I despise. I think I've at least earned the right to know *why*!"  
  
"I loved him!"  
  
"And what about me, Emily?" he cursed himself for the heartbroken tone of his voice. "About the love that *we* had? Did the laws and sanctity of our marriage fall so far down the ladder that you didn't give a crap about them?   
  
"No," he scowled. "Of course not. You thought you were going to die, so you did us all a favour."  
  
"It wasn't like that Zan --"  
  
"Then what was it like, Emily? I sure as hell don't know!"  
  
"I loved you both!"  
  
They both fell silent.   
  
"You made your choice, Emily." He finally replied and moved to sail past her but she grabbed his forearm, stalling him.   
  
"I loved you, Zander, really I did."  
  
He shrugged off her arm. "Pity, Emily. I don't need your damned pity!"  
  
"I'm not pitying you, Zander, just stating a fact!" Emily's own temper ignited. "I loved you… and I'm sorry. If you can't accept that, there's nothing I can do…."  
  
Zander stepped away and shook his head. "You know the sad thing about this whole situation, Emily? I *want* to forgive you…."  
  
Her bottom lip trembled.  
  
"Really, I do. I'm not totally innocent in this – I manipulated you, I lied…. But that doesn't change the fact about what you did. It doesn't change the fact that no matter how much I love you right now, I don't think I can ever forgive you."  
  
He went to move away once more, but her voice stopped him yet again.  
  
"Why'd you come here?"  
  
Zander shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe I'm a masochist." There was another long pause before he sighed again and, surprising them both, reached for her hand. "I didn't come here to fight with you, Emily. That much I *do* know."  
  
Emily looked down at their joined hands, not surprised by her level of awareness around him. Her gaze flicked back to his and she was mesmerized by the dark brown orbs so similar to Nikolas's yet so different.   
  
With that one touch, all the anger flowed out of him. He stepped away, knowing if he remained in contact with her any longer, he would break.   
  
He decided to be truthful. "Elizabeth told me that your engagement is off…. Maybe I came over here to find out if it was true… maybe not. I just knew I needed to get these thoughts off my mind…."  
  
Emily nodded and turned away. "It's true. The engagement's off… I think. Nikolas and I haven't spoken since I walked out," she chuckled, but there was no amusement. "The first time we fought, it was about money. The second time we fought, it was about *you*. If it's any consolation, Nikolas gets equally as testy where you're concerned."  
  
Zander looked at her in amazement.  
  
"I love Nikolas," she concluded, unaware that her statement had caused Zander to grimace. "But it's hard to love a man that had the world at his feet for his entire life and now has had the rug pulled out from under him." She turned to her husband. "At least with you, I knew where we stood. I didn't have to worry that for the sake of your family you would shackle yourself to a woman you loathe. You loved me, you listened and you always trusted me. What we had was *beautiful*."  
  
Zander could listen to no more. He reached across the small distance between them, caught her hand in his and, pulling her close, brought his lips to hers. His fingers tangled in the chestnut waves as she opened her mouth and allowed his tongue access to the sweet honeyed recesses inside. He was starved for the taste of her, but he didn't rush her.   
  
Before she could get used to the reminder of his taste, he pulled away. "What we had… I wish we could have again," he whispered a hair's breadth above her lips. "But if you love him Emily," his heart clenched, "find him and work things out…. Make up your mind for once."  
  
TBC...  
  
A/N: Did you enjoy? If you did, drop me a line and let me know. You know I'm a self-confessed review junkie, lol, so I need my fix!  
  
Cara 


	8. Chapter 8

Show: General Hospital  
  
Title: Change is Good: Chapter 8  
  
Disclaimer: See Chapter 1  
  
A/N: Thank you for last chapter's comments. This chapter may be a little shorter, but enjoy nonetheless.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Jason had moved to a table and so Elizabeth set his plate in front of him – cheeseburger with the works and chili fries. Jason grabbed her wrist. "Are you gonna make me eat alone?" he asked.  
  
"Sorry, no can do, Mr. Morgan. I have to work for my rent money."  
  
Jason chuckled as she flitted away. He couldn't believe how lighthearted he felt as he watched her work. It was lunchtime, so the diner was especially busy. Office workers were stopping in for quick sandwiches and plenty PC High seniors (who were allowed off campus for lunch) were crowding the booths in the corner. He could hear her good-natured laughter as she took the orders from the boisterous highschoolers. But as, the tinkle of the bell overhead signaled a new customer, the smile dropped instantly from her lips. Somehow, he didn't even need to turn to the door to know Ric Lansing had just stepped inside.  
  
Lansing strode right past him, his eyes intent on the petite brunette hurrying to the counter.   
  
"Hello, Elizabeth," came Ric's silky voice.  
  
Elizabeth sighed in mild frustration and met her ex-husband's eyes. Subconsciously, she shielded her stomach, as if protecting her unborn child from the eyes of the sociopath. "Hello, Ric," she replied. "What can I get for you?"  
  
He tried to play off her frosty civility with a smile. "A few moments of your time?" he asked her hopefully.  
  
Elizabeth shook her head. She could already feel a headache starting. "In case you haven't noticed, Ric, it's really busy. I can't talk right now."  
  
"Please, Elizabeth. I just wanted to ask about –"  
  
"Are you alright?"   
  
Ric's eyes narrowed. "I'm talking to Elizabeth, Morgan," he replied disdainfully, not even turning around.   
  
Jason silently questioned her over Ric's head.  
  
"I'm fine," she answered softly.  
  
Jason nodded and reluctantly headed back to his seat, keeping his gaze riveted on the man that had caused so much grief in their lives.  
  
"How's the baby?"  
  
She couldn't help it, but the hair on the back of her neck stood on end at his question. She couldn't help but think back to the time when she'd lost her baby and Ric had kidnapped his own brother's wife in a sick attempt to pass off the other woman's child as theirs. It made her sick to think she'd even considered getting back together with the lunatic much less passing off Zander's child as his.   
  
"Fine. Listen Ric, I really wish you wouldn't ask. This baby's no concern of yours," she said, hoping he'd get the point.  
  
Obviously he hadn't because he looked taken aback. "But I love you, Elizabeth. I'm always going to be concerned about your health and the baby's."  
  
At his profession of love for her, Elizabeth felt like vomiting and her headache worsened. "Listen Ric, if you're not going to order, please leave. But I'm not having this conversation with you any more."  
  
Before he could say anything to the contrary, Liz turned her back on him and went to fill her orders.  
  
Ric cursed in frustration knowing he was getting no closer to weaseling himself back into his ex-wife's good books. He stood up and turned to find himself staring into the cold blue eyes of his brother's Enforcer.   
  
"Elizabeth doesn't want you around her, Lansing," he announced.  
  
"And she wants you?" he sneered, still believing that Elizabeth and Jason were at odds.  
  
"Stay away from her," Jason ordered, his voice not losing its glacier-like quality.  
  
"Is that a threat?"   
  
Jason's eyes narrowed. "I never make threats, Lansing." He brushed past the lawyer, through the busy kitchens and out the back door, leaving Ric standing in disbelief.  
  
He found Elizabeth pacing in the snow, her arms wrapped around her sweatered waist for warmth. She was muttering under breath and she looked as though she wanted to scream.  
  
Jason leaned against the doorjamb. "Maybe you should just scream," he suggested.  
  
Elizabeth shook her head. "Sorry, if I do, they'll all come running, then they'll probably think you're trying to kill me."  
  
Jason smirked ruefully. To the average observer, it was a witty comment, but he knew that was the possible scenario of events if she did scream.  
  
"You should come in; it's cold outside."  
  
"Trust me, my anger is keeping me warm."  
  
Nevertheless, Jason walked toward her and draped his leather jacket about her shoulders. Immediately she was enveloped in the warm masculine scent of his skin clinging to the leather.  
  
Her eyes reflected her gratitude. "Thanks," she whispered.   
  
He nodded and, taking her small hand in his, led her inside.   
  
Although inside the kitchen was much warmer than outside in the snow, she kept his jacket, enjoying its warmth as well as its scent. Elizabeth ran a hand through her hair in frustration. "I don't know why I let him get to me like that; it's not good for the baby," she said, pinching between her eyes, trying to stave off her impending headache.   
  
"I think after all that man's put you through you deserve to get a little worked up," replied Jason.  
  
Liz grinned half-heartedly. "I guess so… but still, he's not worth it."  
  
Jason nodded, just as one of the cooks hurried between them with a giant bowl of potato salad. "Maybe we should take this back out there," he suggested, pointing backward to the diner with his thumb.  
  
Suddenly, a twinkle popped into Liz's cobalt blue eyes. "Actually," she started bashfully, "my shift's just about through. Think we can get outta here?"  
  
Those six words just about made his day. "Sure," he replied softly, his half-grin peeking at the side of his mouth. "C'mon."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Together, they walked in the frosty park in companionable silence. As they passed the frozen pond, Elizabeth paused and looked at the other skaters longingly, smiling wistfully as she watched a father guide his little girl on her wobbly first steps on ice. She was fascinated with their interaction.  
  
Jason was fascinated by her.   
  
"It's funny," she began. "That little girl, she's about three, maybe four-years-old…. They say these are the molding years…but she'll probably never remember this day…. If I had a Dad who took me skating on a school day, I'd probably remember it the rest of my life…" she trailed off and rested a hand on her stomach.  
  
Jason looked at her in confusion.  
  
She turned to him. "Do you think Alan ever took Jason Quartermaine skating in the middle of a school day?"  
  
Jason's look was blank. "I don't know," he replied after a while. "It's highly unlikely, though."  
  
Liz nodded and turned back to the frozen pond. It was such a treasure to hear the peals of the little girl's delighted laughter as she and her father spun in circles. "My Dad was always too busy… come to think of it, he was always too much of something to do anything remotely fatherly towards me. But, this is the sort of thing Zander would probably do." She chuckled. "I'd be furious if I found out… but then I'll look back on this day and remember how happy I was when I saw this little girl."  
  
Jason nodded. He knew how important it was for a child to have a good relationship with their parents. Maybe Jason Morgan wasn't a good example, but Jason Quartermaine was and maybe even Michael. "I've really underestimated Smith, haven't I?" he asked her.  
  
Elizabeth smiled and turned to him again. "Yes," she nodded and left it at that. She took his large hand in her smaller one and tugged away. She reluctantly pulled it away when they were on their way again, but asked the niggling question that had been on her mind since they'd started to patch up their friendship.  
  
"Where've you been for the last four months, Jason?"  
  
He smiled inwardly; he'd been expecting that question ages ago. He took his time answering her question. "I went to France for a while… Paris. That's where Courtney and I were married…. Maybe I felt as though I needed to be close to her in some way… but I didn't, not anymore. So I roamed Europe for a while… Barcelona, Madrid, spent a few days in Amsterdam and Munich, then headed south again for Italy."  
  
Her head whipped around at that and she lost her step just barely, but he continued as though he hadn't noticed it. "I spent about a month there, just roaming. I skipped all the big cities… spent a few days hanging out in small town near Umbria being tempted to smoke and drink and be merry all the days of my life." That brought a smile to her face. "Just being there, roaming in their vineyards or watching old men congregate in the corner in the shade, I felt such solace it was unbelievable. I felt ready to come home… not because there was some danger and my instincts were roaring, but because I *wanted* to."  
  
"And now that you have?" she asked softly "Any regrets?"  
  
Jason paused and looked at her. Her face was upturned and her long wavy dark hair spilled from beneath her rainbow pompom hat. Her cheeks were rosy and her cobalt blue eyes sparkled with vigour. His eyes dropped to her mouth – it was soft and pink and oh so inviting. He couldn't be rude, so he bent and pressed his lips to hers.   
  
Liz was frozen in shock. The feel of Jason lips moving expertly over hers flooded her body with warm and jolted her body to life. She began kissing him back, opening her mouth under his and meeting his tongue with her own. The kiss started to escalate as he pulled her closer, his arms around her waist and she wrapped her arms around his neck and stood on her tiptoes, and the battle for control was on.  
  
Finally Jason pulled away and licked his lips as he surveyed her – her face was flushed with warmth and her lips were swollen from his kisses – she looked thoroughly kissed. "No regrets," he replied softly.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"Really? That's wonderful. Thank you," Alexis Davis set the telephone on the hook and smiled just as the door to her office opened and her nephew stepped inside. "Gee, you must be psychic. I was just about to call you. That was the clerk's office; Emily's divorce is officially final as of today!" she announced with a grin, which promptly fell from her face at Nikolas's less than enthusiastic response.  
  
"Ok…" she trailed off, looking at her nephew with concern. "What's wrong?"  
  
Nikolas heaved a sigh and collapsed in one of the chairs opposite his aunt's desk. "I think I just made the biggest mistake of my life."  
  
Curiosity furrowed Alexis's brow. "Explain," she invited, leaning back in her chair.  
  
Feeling everything like the idiot he knew he was, Nikolas told his aunt of what had transpired between Emily and him in the past two days. She winced especially when he told her of the doubts Emily had admitted to possessing.   
  
"What are you going to do?" she asked.  
  
"I don't know," he admitted, bounding from his chair and coming to star out the picture window behind her desk. "What do you think I should do?"  
  
Alexis chuckled, "God knows I'm the last person you should look to for relationship advice, Nikolas."  
  
"But you're a woman…. You know about these things!"  
  
Alexis rolled her eyes, "I'm just about the least feminine woman there is, trust me." She came to rest a light hand on his shoulder, "But if you ask me, the only way to get this sorted out is to *talk* to Emily."  
  
Nikolas turned to her aunt, his brown eyes swimming with guilt. "She says I never listen…."  
  
Alexis smirked and turned away, "Well, you know what they say: 'There's a first time for everything!'"  
  
TBC...  
  
A/N: Don't forget to review - you know this junkie needs her fix, lol! 


	9. Chapter 9

Show: General Hospital  
  
Title: Change is Good: Chapter 9  
  
Disclaimer: See Chapter 1  
  
A/N: I hope you enjoy.   
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
A beatific smile graced Elizabeth's face as Jason's words washed over her. Jason found his hand lifting to her wind-chilled cheeks to stroke their rosy softness. "How do you do that?" she mused softly, unable to tear her eyes away from his.  
  
"Do what?" he asked softly.  
  
Her cobalt eyes darkened and she looked away briefly before meeting his gaze once more. "After more than a year of fighting and hating… we're right back where we started."  
  
"And where's that?"  
  
Elizabeth smiled ruefully. "At the point where we start dancing around the issue of what's between us."  
  
"You think?"  
  
Confusion furrowed her brow. "Don't you?" she asked.  
  
Jason shrugged. "What do you think is between us, Elizabeth?"  
  
Liz took her time answering the question. "Something that never got a chance to flourish," she answered truthfully.  
  
"And now?" he asked softly.   
  
"Now…. I dunno, Jason…. I get this fluttery feeling every time I know you're around…. I know I should be angry with you, but that all seems to disappear when I look into your eyes…. Now… I'm just waiting for something bad to happen."  
  
Jason frowned.  
  
Elizabeth hurried on. "Something bad always happens right when things are getting good between us. First it was Sonny and you letting me walk away, then there was Courtney and the catastrophe that was my marriage to Ric…" she trailed off. "Catch my drift?"  
  
"Never took you for the superstitious type, Webber," Jason teased mildly.  
  
"Superstitious… never; just forward-thinking."  
  
Jason gifted her with one of his rare half-smiles. "So what does this mean, Elizabeth?" he asked, taken her mittened hand in his leather-enclosed one.  
  
"Maybe this isn't such a great idea you and I –"  
  
Jason pressed a finger to her lips, effectively cutting her off. "Don't try to analyse this, Elizabeth; our friendship never made sense – it just worked. You're right, some obstacle has always been in our way and we've been through so much in past year," he continued, thinking about their failed marriages, his exodus from Port Charles, her pregnancy, "but think of this as a second chance… a chance to start over. We'll take things slow; I won't push you, I promise."  
  
The sparkle returned to her cobalt-blue eyes. She caught his hand and started them on their way. "Define 'slow', Morgan," she invited. "It's such a relative term. Besides, if this 'thing' we have between us moved any slower, I would recommend that we water it twice a day."  
  
Jason grinned.  
  
Some things never changed….  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
Call her psychic but, somehow, Emily knew it was Nikolas when she opened the door. In the two days she hadn't seen him his face had become paler and drawn, grooves lined the side of his mouth and he looked exhausted. Wordlessly, she stepped aside and let him in, closing the door quietly behind her.  
  
Nikolas had not been in this apartment after Alexis had moved out. The decidedly sparse masculine décor didn't surprise him – Jason was above all a minimalist - and he couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable. He turned to face Emily, who had wrapped her arms around herself, indicating she was in self-protection mode.  
  
For a while neither said a word until Emily bit the bullet and spoke first. "I assume since you put yourself through the bother that you have something to say," she said, proud of her fact that her voice was unwavering.  
  
"I'm sorry," was all he managed.  
  
Emily grit her teeth and nodded. "I suppose that's a start," she said shortly.  
  
Nikolas's jaw clenched. "I don't know what else to say, Emily."  
  
Emily could feel her frustration building already and they had been at it for less than two minutes. "Do you even have any idea what you're sorry for, Nikolas?"  
  
"Of course -!" he paused and tried to control his temper. "Of course, I do, Emily," he continued in a much more sedate tone.  
  
"Enlighten me," she invited.  
  
His mouth opened and closed on many occasion but try as he might, the words would not form. He took one look into the sinking disappointment in her brown eyes to know he was on his way to losing this battle with the woman he loved. "Talk to me, Emily," he finally pleaded.  
  
Emily could feel imminent tears pricking at the back of her eyes, burning her nose, but she held them in check. "What's the point, Nikolas?" Her arms tightened around her body, telegraphing her anxiety.   
  
"Us, Emily. *We* are the point."  
  
For the second time that day, she asked: "Why'd you come here?"  
  
"To fix this," he automatically replied.  
  
Wrong answer.  
  
Emily caught her bottom lip between her teeth. "That's the thing, Nikolas. There's nothing to fix."  
  
"How can you say this? You give me this whole speech about how I don't listen to you, that I've *never* listened to you… well, I'm here *now* Emily. I'm here and I'm *begging* you to help me fix this."  
  
Unbidden, the tears started to stream down her face and it took all of Nikolas not to drag her close and try to dash those tears away.   
  
Emily wiped them away herself. "I bet you wish we never had that conversation, don't you."  
  
He didn't even have to answer – she already knew what he thought.  
  
"But you see, if we hadn't, I wouldn't have been forced to think – *we* wouldn't have been forced to think. I would've still been wrapped in this bubble in this idealistic world I'd imagined and you would still be holding out on this dream that a solution to your problems would just drop into your lap…."  
  
"That's not true –"  
  
"Yes it is, Nikolas," she didn't even have to raise her voice.  
  
"There're so many issues lying between us, I don't even remember what we were arguing about. But the universal feeling is, I don't like where I am now, Nikolas and I know you don't like where you are, either."  
  
"What does this mean?" he asked, disgusted by the desperation he could hear in the edges of his voice.  
  
For indeterminable seconds Emily stared at the enormous diamond winking on her left ring finger. Time seemed to slow down as she slowly slid the ring off her finger and held it out to him. "I want to like myself again, Nikolas…. I can't do it if I'm with you."  
  
Nikolas didn't say a word. A barrage of emotions was flitting across his face. He couldn't speak, the pain of her words weighing heavily on his heart. Somehow, he made it out of the apartment, but just managed not to hurl the ring in his fist as far away from him as humanly possible.  
  
**Crap!** he thought suddenly.  
  
He forgot to tell her about the divorce.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
It was too early to be drinking, and he needed to be sober to get others drunk that night anyway, but Zander was suddenly craving something a helluva lot more potent than the light beer in the fridge when the telephone rang.  
  
Before the machine could cut in, he lifted it from the cradle. "Hello?"  
  
The person on the line took a deep breath before they began: "This afternoon, you told me to choose…."  
  
Upon recognizing the voice, Zander's chest tightened, expecting the worst.   
  
"I just wanted you to know I chose *myself*."  
  
Zander's eyes widened as her words registered. A soft understanding smile graced his face.  
  
Emily obviously couldn't see his smile, but somehow she knew it was there and couldn't help smile even as the phone registered an electronic click as Zander replaced it on the cradle.  
  
She was starting to like herself better already.  
  
TBC...  
  
A/N: I hope you enjoyed. Drop me a line. 


	10. EPILOGUE

Show: General Hospital  
  
Title: Change is Good: EPILOGUE  
  
Disclaimer: See Chapter 1  
  
A/N: Thank you to all my readers who stuck by me, hopefully even those who were on a Journey train;  
I appreciated all the support! Drop me a line to let me know what you thought of the story so far and if   
you've got any ideas for a sequel... well... you never know.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Port Charles, July 2008  
  
"Happy birthday, Joanna... Happy birthday to you....!"   
  
The small crowd crowed and clapped as the sabled-eyed cherub leaned forward and blew out the   
four candles on the enormous birthday cake.   
  
"Did you make a wish, sweetheart?" Zander asked his daughter.   
  
Joanna nodded as she wiggled in her mother's arms. "Uh-huh, Daddy," she giggled.  
  
"Well what did you wish for?" the question came from Joanna's other father, Jason.  
  
"Nuh-uh, can't tell you. I don't want to get in trouble with the wish fairy. You already said she's on vacation," she admonished.  
  
Everyone gathered around the table laughed. It was a large crowd: Cameron and Alexis, Sonny and the guards Johnny, Max and Francis, Audrey, the Q's - Lila and Reginald, Monica and Justus - the Spencer gang - Bobbie, Luke, Lucky and Leslie-Lu - and of course, the proud parents: Zander, Elizabeth and Jason; everyone heartily cheered as Elizabeth sang out, "Who wants cake?"  
  
Penthouse two was filled with joyous laughter as Joanna gasped at the array of birthday presents she'd gotten.Of course, there was friendly competition between the two fathers but Uncle Sonny won out on the most extravagant -a brand new pink and white tricycle. In the midst of the all the good-natured din, the knock on the door could barely be heard.  
  
"I'll get it," offered Zander as Liz was otherwise occupied with Jason nuzzling her neck as they watched Joanna smotherher uncle in kisses. Back to them, he missed the surreptitous glances between the couple.  
  
"Did I miss anything -" the person broke off as she realised who had answered.  
  
"Emily...."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Elizabeth watched with a small smile on her face as her two bestfriends spoke together in low tones on the couch. It was wonderful - they had a lot of unanswered questions.  
  
Quietly, she called, "Good night," though she wasn't quite sure they heard her and climbed the stairs to Joanna's bedroom,where Jason was tucking their daughter in. She paused on the threshold as she took in the scene between her husband and daughter.  
  
"Did you have a good birthday, sweetie?" he asked, smoothing her baby-soft hair.  
  
"Uh-huh. I wish everyday could be my birthday," she replied, reaching out to hold his hand.  
  
Jason smiled. "Just as much that it isn't, considering how much your Uncle Sonny spoils you."  
  
Joanna smiled even as a huge yawn overtook her. She was trying to stay awake - she never wanted this day to end. "Tell me a story," she asked.  
  
Jason smiled, knowing that she would probably be asleep after the first five minutes.   
  
Liz smiled, knowing the same thing. "Think we can skip the story tonight, Joey?" she asked, coming further into the room. "We're tired even if you're not." She bent and kissed her daughter's smooth forehead.   
  
Jason did the same.  
  
Just when they thought she had drifted off to sleep, she spoke. "Wanna know my wish, Mommy?"  
  
Liz frowned. "If you do, it might not come true."  
  
"But it did. I wished that Daddy could have someone special to love just like you and Jason.... The wish fairy must be back from vacation because it's already coming true...."  
  
Zander, who had been perched outside the room when his daughter spoke, froze and looked at Emily, who smiled at him.   
  
Their eyes broadcast what their mouths didn't - Let's hope she doesn't take those sick days again.  
  
THE END.  
  
A/N: I hope you enjoyed. Leave me a note just to let me know. If you'd like to know what happened in between those four years, tell me and I'll write a sequel, with any other special pairings you might request. Thanks for reading.  
  
Ciao,  
  
Cara 


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